The Counterfeit Moon
by Nyx Nuit
Summary: War is coming and Jasper must learn to navigate a bigger and crueler world than the one he was 'raised' in. Rated M for violence, language and themes. OOC/AU
1. Contusionem

**Nyx: Hello all! For those of you have been with me since the beginning know very well what this is. **

**Puff: Of course they do, they're not of lesser intelligence. **

**Nyx: I'm well aware. Now, I don't own Twilight, blah blah blah, without further ado, happy reading. **

* * *

_Feels like I'm waking from the dead_  
_And everyone's been waitin' on me_  
_'Least now I'll never have to wonder_  
_What it's like to sleep a year away_  
_But were we indestructible_  
_I thought that we could brave it all (all)_  
_I never thought that what would take me out_  
_Was hiding down below_

_-Now, Paramore_

* * *

Chapter 1. Contusionem

_Blood. _

_Chains. _

_A searing pain around her abdomen. _

_Froth, tainted pink foaming at her lips. _

_Shouts and a scream. _

_Cold stone, warm arms and then ice. _

_Jasper!... _

"Are you awake now?" the familiar voice was a shock to her, but she would recognize the sharp disapproving voice of her abuela anywhere.

The old woman came into focus, with a weathered copy of Tolsoy's _War and Peace_ on her lap and giving her granddaughter a look that was equal parts concerned and annoyed. "I am now," she said, her voice little more than a whisper, no doubt from both the strain she'd put on her vocal chords and disuse.

"Good," her abuela replied sharply. The woman looked no more than forty, her dark brown hair barely beginning to gray and pulled back out of her eyes, her browned skin had become pale with the years but there was still that spark to her brown eyes that she'd passed down to her only grandchild.

Bella observed her surroundings, noting that the room she was in was too lavish for her barely decent apartment in Seattle. She was incredibly tired, despite all of the sleep she'd gotten in the past twenty-four hours or so. "Abuela, what day is it?" Bella asked in a whisper.

"'Tis the twelfth of April," she replied, "at precisely two in the afternoon." Bella took this all in with barely a blink.

"How long have I been asleep?" she went on.

"Three days," her abuela replied with a no-nonsense tone of voice, "How much do you remember?" the question was asked with a note of surprising gentleness.

"All of it," Bella replied. Abuela nodded her understanding, marking the page she was on and setting it aside, though the woman had read the book so many times she could recite it from cover to cover.

"Honestly, I wouldn't wish anyone to remember those horrors, but in a way I am glad that you do," abuela said, "otherwise, you would be troubled more by what you do not remember than what you do." Bella didn't say anything, her eyes going to the scenes painted on the ceiling, laughing cupids, smiling goddesses...Zebulon walked in with a tray. "It is good to see that you are awake Miss Bella," he commented, setting the tray down on her nightstand.

"Thank you Zebulon," she replied hoarsely.

"Lemon tea with honey to soothe your throat, and some nice broth," Zebulon said, pouring her a cup as he spoke. If the butler was tired, he did not show it through his actions, though the shadows under his eyes said otherwise.

"That will be all Zebulon," Demosthenes spoke up from the doorway, "now please rest. You are of no use to me exhausted."

"As you wish, Master Swan," the butler replied, inclining his head to his lord and the ladies before egressing the chambers.

"It is good to see that you are awake," Demosthenes said, his clothes were impeccable and he had not a hair out of place, the only sign of his distress was the shadow of a growing beard. "_Buenas tardes, mama_," he greeted his mother who stood and straightened his tie in reply before sitting back down and reaching for her book.

"Your father nearly ran himself ragged when he found out that you'd gone missing," Dem directed his words at his niece, "he'll be here within the hour now that I've told him you're awake."

"He shouldn't worry so much," Bella murmured. Her uncle's expression sobered.

"He can't help but worry," Dem said, "we all do. Goodness knows what your Major has been going through."

"He's not mine," Bella immediately protested, "And I'll be right as rain in a couple of days."

"I'll let dear little brother be the judge of that," Dem said, "until then, you're not to leave this bed."

"Do lighten up Demosthenes," abuela snapped, "she's not made of fine china. She's survived demonic ordeals before."

"Tenuous demonic ordeals, mama," Dem said patiently, "traumatic events." Bella leaned her head back against the pillows, fighting against her heavy eyelids while her uncle and abuela began to argue.

She didn't have the strength to lift her pinkie finger, the abrasions where the chains had bit into her skin still stung. No doubt, she was given a sleeping tonic in addition to a healing potion in order to keep the nightmares at bay, but little flashes had snuck in and bit her squarely on the ass.

Over the past few months she hadn't been able to get the visual of Jasper's crumbling expression out of her head. She'd had a lot of time to contemplate things alone in her cell. And now, all she wanted to do was sleep.

It took her several more days to recuperate and regain enough strength to move about. Helpings of tea, soup and potion along with plenty of bedrest had gotten her feeling good as new.

But her irritating relatives insisted she stay where they could keep an eye on her just in case she crashed. Those few days had become a full fortnight and now she was ready to escape the watchful eyes of her cantankerous abuela, stressed-out uncle and overly concerned father.

She had taken to reacquainting herself with the manor she'd not had a chance to explore since she was ten. The ballroom of her uncle's mansion looked incredibly dull without the five-hundred people to lighten it up.

Her head was tilted back to let her eyes fixate on the ceiling that changed depending on Demosthenes' mood. When he was having one of his lavish parties, the ceiling would be covered in Renaissance artwork, Botticelli's and Leonardo da Vinci's. On a day like this, the ceiling reflected the weather, like in that ridiculous _Harry Potter_ series. She let a breath escape through her nose. "Miss Bella, I have all of your things packed," Zebulon entered the room on ghost feet.

"Thank you Zebulon," she replied, her eyes still on the ceiling, "I'll be out of your hair soon enough."

"It was my pleasure Miss Bella," the butler politely replied, "and please, come back for a visit soon." she tried to give the fanged butler a smile, but getting her face to cooperate was difficult. So she ended up forsaking the task and turned her attention back to the ceiling.

Clever really, how it looked as if the chandelier was hanging from a piece of the sky. She could almost admire the craftsmanship, the magic that been woven into making the whole room beautiful. "You know that the ceiling was a complete accident?" Uncle Dem said strolling into the room, his eyes roving the stretch of sky overhead.

"I was trying to change it to a certain shade of blue that I had seen the night before," Dem went on, "The first time the color was too dark so I tried describing it to be a bit bluer than the sky and I ended up with a picture of the sky instead."

"Where did your inspiration come from?" she asked.

"Ironically enough, it came from a woman. Mortal, quite young," Dem said, "but then again so was I."

"Did you ever see her again?" Bella asked.

"No," he replied, "she got engaged to this big shot banker, and disappeared several days before the wedding." Bella remained silent, watching the clouds drift quietly across the ceiling at a snail's pace. "I'm surprised you came back here," Demosthenes went on to say.

"Why is that?" she said.

"The last time you were here, it was with Jasper," Dem said. She snorted at him, setting her head to rights and rolling her eyes.

"Honestly uncle, you're acting like we were one of those horribly attached couples who had a heinous breakup."

"You are absolutely right," Dem stated. "But it seems I just made a fool of myself, getting my hopes up and all."

"Hopes for what?" she asked, a scowl beginning to form on her face, "Uncle, you didn't seriously think-"

"Yes," Dem said calmly, "yes I did. And while I'll never think that anyone is good enough for my niece, that man came close enough."

"To each his own," Bella shrugged.

"You can't play this off," Dem said his tone nearly severe, "not like you have for the past eight years."

"What you call 'playing it off' I call 'trying to get over it'," Bella replied.

"Your methods largely involve ignoring the elephant rather than calling for help to remove the damned elephant," Demosthenes snapped, "it isn't healthy."

"First we talked about why the hell your ceiling is blue, and now we're talking about elephants," Bella said, "make up your mind uncle."

"If not for me, than for your father," Dem went on as if his niece hadn't spoken.

"I wish I could fulfill your wishes uncle," Bella said, "but I'm afraid...even I don't have that kind of power."

* * *

**Nyx: And there you have it. The first installment of the sequel to _The Artificial Sun_. If you are a brand new reader, I suggest going back and reading TAS first. Or don't, whatever floats your boat. **

**Puff: *slurps on an Icee* **

**Nyx: Review?**


	2. Reconciliatio

**Nyx: It's been a long wait but here it is. Happy Friday!**

**Puff: What's happy about it? Everyone forgot my birthday!**

**Nyx: Puff...your birthday isn't for another two months. **

**Puff: Hell, I forgot my birthday! Jeez, you humans operate on a totally different calendar. **

**Nyx: *-_-* Well...I don't own anything you may recognize, music and such belongs to their respective owners, blah blah blah. **

* * *

_Here comes the rain again_  
_falling from the stars_  
_drenched in my pain again_  
_becoming who we are_

_As my memory rests_  
_but never forgets what I lost_  
_Wake me up when September ends_

_-Wake Me Up When September Ends, Green Day_

* * *

Chapter 2. Reconciliatio

She jumped awake, rubbing at her eyes and yawning before checking to see if her wallet was still in her pocket. Falling asleep on a New York subway was an unwise thing to do, but it was like she had contracted narcolepsy.

Her body was still out of whack from being in the fifth dimension and from time to time she would get hit with bouts of fatigue. Her wrist came into plain view when she brought up her hand to scrub at her forehead and push flyway hairs out of her eyes.

The scars were thin, white and faded and looked years old instead of just under a month, but they stood out on her too thin wrists, her bones plainly visible underneath her skin, her veins seemed to bulge.

She had lost too much weight and she couldn't keep up even the simplest of spells. The smallest magical tasks knocked her clean out. The wisest thing to do would have been to stay in Chicago, regain her full strength and retrain.

But for the first time in a long while, Bella was not in full control of her emotions. For such a long time she'd grown used to hiding them, emotions gave you conscience, feelings could be your weakness.

She didn't even know what happened to Jasper, if he thought she'd left or suspected what truly happened. She hoped for the latter, and even though she did say goodbye, she hadn't meant that kind of goodbye.

She got up from her seat when her stop was called and stumbled out of the station into the New York sunshine. No one payed any attention to her, after all this was New York City. She took a seat outside of a little cafe. "You're late," Nimueh said, her snow white hair had been left down.

"Sorry," Bella shrugged not offering up an excuse.

"Why didn't you go back to Seattle?" Nimueh asked.

"I don't know," Bella replied, taking the offered menu from a passing waitress and reading over it. Nimueh raised one eyebrow and sucked the silver ring in her lip between her teeth.

"I think you're afraid of facing him," she said matter of factly.

"I've never been good at confrontation," Bella deadpanned.

"I wasn't attempting to make a joke," Nimueh said flatly, "You need to put yourself to rights and take care of _unfinished business_."

"And how do you propose I do that?" Bella retorted, "I can't put her down like she's a sick dog."

"You can't keep her alive," Nimueh said, her pale gray eyes cold and stern. "Eventually she will die. It would be selfish of you to let her wither away like that." they didn't speak again until Bella got her food. "Have you found a place to stay?" Nimueh asked.

"Your couch," Bella joked, and the psychic cracked a smile, her canines slightly longer than usual. Even in 'Anything goes' New York, Bella's cousin was still a strange sight to see. She wasn't completely albino, her skin and hair being white as snow and her eyes were the palest gray, nearly white and sometimes people assumed that she was blind though her eyesight was better than a humans. She wore a lot of black, which greatly set off her skin and hair. She almost looked like a porcelain doll with her coloring. "How's the gang?" she asked. Nimueh looked at her over the rip of her cup before setting it down.

"They're fine," Nimueh replied, "I haven't told them you're in town."

"That's good." Bella hadn't spoken to the New York crew in quite a while, they were more closely knit here in one of the biggest cities in the U.S., there was a lot of ground to cover in New York and a lot more demons that migrated here because the population was so large. From time to time there'd be a disappearance, but it was the killing sprees they squashed when they cropped up. "How's Charlie?" she was asked.

"He's fine," Bella said, "worried about me, but fine."

"All you do is worry that man," Nimueh rolled her eyes, "before he even lives to be two-hundred and forty he'll be as white-haired as I am!"

"Dem worries too," Bella added, "and abuela came to see me."

"Abuela?" Nimueh blinked, "She rarely ever comes to visit, not even for Dem's parties or holidays!"

"I know," Bella nodded, "apparently, my rescue warranted enough concern for her to come visit."

"Is she still carrying around that damned copy of _War and Peace_?" Nimueh asked, swirling the ice and what was left of her drink around in her cup.

"You better believe it," Bella confirmed.

Nimueh rolled her eyes, "I don't know how many times I offered to buy that woman another copy, and yet she refuses. The damned thing has one foot in the literary grave!" Bella chuckled, and finished the last of her sandwich.

"Come on, we're attracting stares."

"Let them stare," Nimueh said, "this is New York! Where the strange thrive!" she said this with a flourish in her incredibly posh British accent which completely contrasted with her appearance. Anyone who'd talked with the psychic over the phone before meeting her in person ended up having quite a shock.

Nimueh's brownstone had been painted blue, breaking up the monotony of the block. The psychic whistled through her teeth, "Good fucking Lord," she hissed looking her cousin over from head to toe when she'd removed her oversized jacket that hid her body from view, "B, you look like hell." her clothes too big for her thinner body.

"Yes, thank you, very much," Bella replied bitterly. She'd tried gaining the weight back in a healthy way, trying to build up muscle mass and stuffing her ass with protein and she informed Nimueh of this.

Nimueh snorted in disapproval, "You need hearty food, B," she said, "Southern soul food, fatty fish dishes, that's how you gain weight properly."

"Not very many gourmet restaurants on the road from Chicago," Bella said, yawning.

"Go get some sleep," Nimueh said rolling her eyes, "you need it." Bella didn't argue, passing out on top of the coverlet in her traveling clothes.

_**x-x-x**_

It was a little house further away from the city, out of downtown and more into the suburbs. The gang hadn't changed much. Daniil, Frown's chatty Russian brother spoke enthusiastically with a vampiress, a red head who looked unimpressed with the point Daniil was apparently trying to make.

Carrie, the bubbly little witch with a sadistic streak liked to use a long hammer like in the cartoons, and damn if the shorty wasn't strong. And Azazel was there too, a tall dark figure who hovered in the corner, arms decorated with ink folded across his chest .

Bella noticed a newcomer standing off to the side; her brown hair bleached in certain places by the sun, cautious brown eyes and a jacket too big for her, picking at her nails with a knife. "And who is this?" Bella asked.

"This is Max," Carrie introduced her, Max looked up and waved, "she was initiated last February." there was something unusual about the girl, but only because Bella could spot the same world-weariness in her as she had in herself. But this girl looked a couple of years younger than she did, hardened by the world...and heartbreak. "How long you in town this time?" Daniil said, slinging an arm around the Reaper and giving her a fangy grin.

"A few months," Bella answered, ducking under his arm.

"Any word from brother dearest?" Daniil asked.

"He's well," Bella replied.

"Can't say the same for you," Daniil told her. Carrie hissed and zapped him.

"Don't be rude," she scolded.

"That wasn't necessary," he growled, "besides, it's true. Look at her!"

"Well, forgive me if accommodations aren't what they should be in Bahumat's palace dungeons," Bella said sarcastically. Azazel's spine went rigid, Carrie's eyes wide. "You don't mean that demon king we pissed off a couple years ago do you?" Daniil laughed nervously.

"The very same," Bella nodded.

"Oh fuck," they all swore in tandem. Nimueh was munching an apple in the corner, the silver in her mouth flashing as she took a bite. For a moment, the only sound was her chewing. Max looked a little lost, her eyebrows scrunched. "Who's Bahumat?" she asked.

"Well...he was a prince," Carrie said, "a demon prince. Until we killed his father and destroyed his palace in the process."

"That's not even the worst of it," Bella said lowly, "he's got the _Vaegul_ on his side." the silence this time was tense.

"That's impossible," Azazel said lowly, speaking up for the first time. "They work for no one."

"Well, now they work for him," Bella replied, "since I've gotten out, he might send them after us."

"If he does how long do you reckon we have?" Daniil asked.

"I don't know," Bella said, "the council's closed all openings to Earth. I got lucky."

"Here's an idea, why don't we just ask Nimueh?" Carrie asked loudly gesturing to the albino, who raised an eyebrow at the witch.

"You're fully aware of how I operate," Nimueh said, "unless it's dire, I don't interfere."

"So...she's not interfering, I'm guessing it's not dire!" Daniil said happily.

"I didn't say that," Nimueh sang. The Russian glared at her.

"Could you be any more cryptic?" he demanded, "Make up your damn mind, we're trying to survive here!"

"So far you're doing a piss poor job," the Brit replied.

"Guys, fighting never solved anything," Carrie spoke up loudly.

"As a matter of fact, fighting seems to solve everything," Azazel muttered. Nimueh yawned widely, tossing her apple core into the garbage.

"I think you're all rubbish," she announced, "we'll discuss this better when the sun is up, eh?" Daniil began to protest, "I'm fully aware you're a vampire, fang boy. We'll catch you up to speed." Bella followed her cousin back into the chilly New York air, the sounds of the city were far off.

"I need to get over this whole narcoleptic thing," Bella said.

"Your body is attempting to regain the strength it's lost and heal," Nimueh said, "which takes a lot of energy."

"I can't even do magic," Bella said, "the last time I was this weak..."

"Thinking about it won't help matters," Nimueh said, "I could attempt to make you a sleeping tonic."

"No," Bella negated shaking her head, "they're addictive. I need to learn to sleep on my own."

"And have you thought about contacting Mister Whitlock?" Nimueh asked.

"Yes," Bella replied, "but I don't think I will...not yet."

"Suit yourself," Nimueh said.

* * *

**Nyx: And that's that. We meet the New York crew and get a little more interaction with Nimueh. Jasper's bit is coming up. **

**Puff: For my birthday you should get me those Little Mermaid leggings from Hot Topic. **

**Nyx: Um...I'll see what I can do, 'kay? Review? **


	3. Dulce

**Nyx: Why the hell does it feel like forever since my last update? I mean, seriously, it was only last week. **

**Puff: You got doughnuts! And you didn't save me one?!**

**Nyx: This week has been...nuts. What's left of my sanity is slowly chipping away, little by little. My friends enjoy laughter at my expense. **

**Puff: I'm mad at you. **

**Nyx: On that note, I don't own Twilight, blah blah blah, anything you may recognize probably isn't mine like music and stuff. Moving on. **

* * *

_What am I gonna do when the best part of me was always you?_  
_And what am I supposed to say when I'm all choked up and you're ok?_  
_I'm falling to pieces, yeah,_  
_I'm falling to pieces, yeah,_  
_I'm falling to pieces_  
_(One still in love while the other one's leaving)_  
_I'm falling to pieces_  
_('Cause when a heart breaks no it don't break even)_

_-Breakeven, The Script_

* * *

Chapter 3. Dulce

_January _

Jasper was torn.

There was no other way to express his feelings in words.

On the one hand he wanted to punch his own sister in the face for ruining everything.

No not his sister, Rosalie Cullen-Hale was no longer his sister, he couldn't even call her a friend.

On the other, he had been raised not to hit a woman, and yet, he had lost so much of his morals in the wars. What good were morals, when all they did was get you killed?

Honor was but a dream, a total farce now that the world believed in order to get what you wanted and survive, it was best to lie and cheat. And now he was caught between going to Texas, to seek refuge in the heat and the solace of his old house, and staying in Seattle in case Bella ever came back.

He hadn't bothered to see if she was actually at her apartment, since his hackles raised in proximity to the building. His instincts had never led him wrong, so he took the hint and took off, but he kept feeling like something was missing.

He wished he could feel fatigue, he wished he could sleep, and he wished Bella were here and his estranged siblings were not. He went to work anyway, opening himself up to the emotional atmosphere, feeling the phantom high of the crowd and taking it in the best he could.

And as much as Jasper didn't like to admit it, he was falling apart.

There was a deep ache in his bones that made him feel _old_ and he could just imagine the look on Carlisle's face at the description of the symptoms. 'Vampires don't get arthritis Jasper,' he would say, 'you're being ridiculous'...or at least, Jasper hoped he was.

He worked like a robot, rebuffing the advances of drunk witches and horny vampiresses who flashed their fangs in an attempt to get him within reasonable distance of seduction. But only one vampire caught his attention on that particular night, but this one just happened to be an acquaintance.

"Frown!" Jasper called, vaulting over the bar with ease, capturing the Russian's interest.

"Ah, Jasper!" Frown praised, "I must say when Bella informed me you finally got yourself a job, she did not say anything about it being in one of the city's most popular hotspots for supes."

"It's only place that doesn't rib me for sparkling in the LEDs," Jasper shrugged, much to Frown's amusement.

"I like you Whitlock," he said after a round of chuckles, "we should have a drink sometime."

"Look, I'll be straight with you," Jasper said, "I'm bothering you because I want to know if you've seen Bella recently." Frown raised an eyebrow.

"Well, not since Christmas Eve," the Russian told him, "she was a little banged up having gotten in a fight with a bunch of rowdy werewolves, but-"

"Then you wouldn't happen to know if she skipped town or not?" Jasper asked. Frown shook his head.

"Nope," the Russian replied, "wouldn't know a thing. She might send a crow or pop up one of these days. Who knows?"

"If she does, can you let me know if she's okay?" Jasper asked. Frown looked a little affronted, but his eyes went cold revealing absolutely nothing for Jasper to identify there, but empathetically he could tell Frown was curious and perceptive enough to tell that something had happened. Frown licked down one of his fangs, looking vaguely conflicted.

"Of course," Frown promised and Jasper was a little tempted to see if the fanged fiend had his fingers crossed behind his back, instead he hopped back behind the bar and went to work, taking up the easy rhythm from before. He'd deal with Frown later.

He hadn't been entirely useless, just that his information was a little more than insignificant, after all it didn't pertain to Bella's whereabouts. He hoped she was alright, and he decided that he was going to stay, just in case she came back and talked out what had happened.

He nearly had to physically threaten Rosalie and Emmett to keep their traps completely shut since he refused to betray Bella's privacy. And he'd violated her trust by not telling her that Rosalie and Emmett had come into town. Now, it was all about dealing with the consequences and frankly, he wasn't handling it too well.

A vacation would be nice, but having now gotten acquainted with this whole other world, Lord knew that it would stick like stink on shit. When his shift was over he went back home smelling of ecstasy, faerie drugs, amongst other things and covered in body glitter from his brief stint on the dance floor when he'd been conversing with Frown.

His nostrils flared and he let out a little growl when he got to his floor, moving too fast to warrant concern over being seen. "Seriously, don't you know the goddamn meaning of privacy?" he growled kicking the door shut behind him. Rosalie raised her chin, golden eyes suspiciously bright.

"I'm here to apologize," she said coldly, shocking the hell out of him.

"Well, good for you Rosalie," he replied failing to keep from sounding snide, "looks like you're finally learning proper etiquette."

"Don't mock me Jasper," she hissed, her eyes darkening, "I didn't come here to be made fun of."

"I don't want your apologies," he replied, "does Emmett know you're here?"

"No," Rosalie negated, "he's hunting. I gave him the slip and decided to talk to you in private."

"I didn't ask for a play-by-play," Jasper said, "it's not like you to not get to the point. So get to it then get the hell out of my house." for a moment Rosalie bristled, and then she deflated, all of the fight leaving her at once.

"Jasper..." Rosalie said, sounding resigned, "I'm sorry." Jasper didn't hide his shock this time, at how absolutely sincere she sounded.

It wasn't like Rosalie _at all_ to say those two little words, and it most definitely wasn't like her to be considerate of other people. She was too vain and too bitter for that. It was a well-known fact that Rosalie believed that everything she said was the honest-to-God truth, and made a point to never say sorry for the things she said or, Heaven forbid, take back her words. But now... "For what?" Jasper asked.

"I'm not stupid Jasper," Rosalie said, "You've never, _ever_ told Alice you loved her. Ever. Not even when you two said your vows. And yet...you love _her_. You said it, out loud." incredulity was written all over her face and colored her words. He'd never told anyone he married Alice to get everyone to shut the fuck up. 'Living in sin' and all that bullshit.

"Yes," Jasper replied, "I did."

"Why her?" Rosalie asked.

"Why not her?" Jasper shrugged and she blinked. "Explain to me again why you're apologizing."

"Because...when that girl looked me in the eye, I saw myself," Rosalie said after a moment's silence. Jasper found it hard to take this all in, after all in all the decades he'd known Rosalie, she never showed this much vulnerability in his presence.

Since the day they met Rosalie had always held Jasper in such regard with a modicum of fear and he had his appearance to thank for that. That fear had never gone away, even when Alice had 'tamed' him. Why Rosalie was attempting to make amends for treating him like shit for all these years just now, he only had one thing to say to that, "Bella isn't like you Rosalie."

"She's been broken like I was," Rosalie rebutted, her eyes becoming fierce.

"And you think I don't know that?" Jasper retorted.

"And yet you fucked her," Rosalie said, "I could smell it on you. You had sex with her when you knew-"

"I don't have to justify my actions to you," he interrupted, "you've never treated me with the same respect I gave you. So you, can get the hell out of my apartment."

"Did you fuck her before you divorced Alice?" Rosalie viciously pried, "How would your girlfriend like to know that she was but a mistress?"

"Don't you dare impugn my honor, Rosalie," Jasper said, sounding deceptively calm, "I'm not so deplorable a man as to disgrace my vows. I meant it, get out." Rosalie walked past him with a stiff back, her lips pressed into a thin line.

"And Rosalie, a word of this to anyone else besides your husband and I get at least an arm." she said nothing and with that, Jasper was alone again. He looked around his apartment and harshly exhaled. He took in the two unwelcome scents in his apartment before turning on his heel and making for the downtown slums of Seattle to find a criminal for dinner.

.

.

.

"Jeezus what the fucking hell Peter?" Jasper hissed into the cell phone. "I'm a tad busy at the moment." the psychopath at his feet gave a little moan of pain, Jasper kicked him and gave him a hit of fatigue. "Yeah, don't care," Peter replied flippantly, "just thought you should know, some nice apartments became available uptown."

"Did you seriously interrupt a feeding to tell me about goddamn local listings?" Jasper replied, "You're incorrigible!"

"I'll take that as a compliment," Peter said jovially. "And I called to bother you about something else." another groan and Jasper hefted his victim by the neck with his free hand, rolling his eyes. "What?" he asked, only half used to Peter's antics.

"It's been an awful long decade and a half Major," Peter said, "mind tellin' me when you're gonna pay me and the missus a visit?"

"I don't feel much like leaving Seattle at the moment Peter," Jasper replied, "besides, I'm moving since Rosalie and Emmett decided to give me a totally unwarranted Christmas present in the form of their presence."

"Well that explains things," Peter grumbled. "Good luck."

"No thanks to you fucker," Jasper replied, "can I finish my dinner now?"

"If you ain't comin' to us, we'll come to you then," Peter said, speaking as if Jasper hadn't spoken, "only for a little bit though. A man can only tolerate so much rain."

"Well...that's unexpected," Jasper deadpanned.

"You need us," Peter said quietly, "We got that message. Loud and clear." Jasper was quiet for a few beats.

"Can I finish eating now?" he asked. Peter just laughed and hung up.

* * *

**Nyx: We see how Jasper's doing. Fun times all around. The chapter title comes from a longer phrase: "Dulce et decorum est propatia mori." **

**Puff: I'm still mad at you. **

**Nyx: You people are really freaking quiet...but whatever floats your boat. **


	4. Commoveo

**Nyx: 'Tis Friday! **

**Puff: Yaaaay!**

**Nyx: I'm not a day late, I swear. And I don't own anything you may recognize, all OCs are mine, music isn't, blah blah blah, don't care, I'm not rich. **

**Puff: I still think you're too young to be bitter. **

**Nyx: One of us has to be the pessimist. **

* * *

_Lay my head, under the water _  
_Aloud I pray, for calmer seas_  
_And when I wake from this dream, with chains all around me _  
_No, I've never been, I've never been free _

_No, I've never been, I've never been free _  
_No, I've never been, I've never been free_

_-Under The Water, The Pretty Reckless_

* * *

Chapter 4. Commoveo

_February_

Jasper was half tempted to keep the mattress, since the smell of her was so deeply embedded into the foams and fabrics. And it helped the ache, that strange phantom ache that hadn't gone away after just four days of being without her...he stared down at the mattress, looking at the light scratches she'd left with her nails, and the gouges from when he'd struggled to keep his cool when he'd tasted her blood for the very first time.

He felt a light tickle in his throat and venom began to pool on his tongue at the memory.

He shook his head and decided to take it to the junkyard, where the five-thousand dollar mattress would be appreciated more than it would in his new apartment. He kept the couch and he hated to see his sound system go, but it would give him something to do in his new place. That and soundproofing the damn walls. His new place was more rustic, made out of brick and felt more homey.

The pest control was mediocre, but he could care less about insects and rats. His fingers tapped out an inane beat on the steering wheel while he drove, and he looked forward to the quiet in this part of town where he'd have fewer neighbors.

And dinner would be more within reach. He'd gotten better at isolating himself from outside influences, including those of his prey. In all honesty, thinking about Bella helped.

He almost hated that, now that she had gone and left him after he made such a magnanimous confession. He wondered where she was now, if she was happy or not. He didn't go to work that night, the ache starting to come back and sitting on the couch seemed to help.

Tomorrow he'd need to get a new mattress and a new distraction. And for the first time in his unnaturally long life...Jasper felt tired.

And there was no cure for the ache.

He rested his head back against the cushions, counting patterns in the ceiling and listening to the slow drip from the leaky faucet in the kitchen. Valentine's Day was next week, he thought errantly, before he closed his eyes. . . .

_A plague of screams, some garbled, some raw. The heat of the bonfire that was there to remind them that here there was no place for weakness. Here, there was no place for things that did not have a purpose. _

_Most of their afterlives were short, and in those very short lives they would all succeed in making him a stone cold bastard. Each hit of pain made him more impervious. It all came down to this... _

_"The Titan walks alone," one newborn had whispered sagely in the tense silence before battle, "Perses knows no mercy." _

_He'd been the last to die. _

He was startled out of his memories by the slow drip of water on his forehead and he made a mental note to patch up the leak before it got too bad. It had been such a long time since he'd been allowed to remember the second and most popular of his many names.

Jasper had taken up his Christian name again, to avoid aggressors seeking to challenge him for his title after such a long time at war.

He shook his head, moving to a different place on the couch, needing a distraction.

Peter would be here soon, meaning he had so little time to put up a soundproof wall and would have to work through the night to get it done. _Perfect,_ he thought.

_Present Day_

"Enough," she said quietly, barely staying upright and covered in a whole new batch of bruises.

"Much better today," Azazel replied, his voice a quiet but resonating timbre. It was as mellifluous as hers when she used her lull, but Azazel didn't have the ability to turn his off like she did. His midnight black hair hung barely past his chin and into his eyes, impeding the view of stern violet eyes.

They were the only ones in the training room today, he had been the only sparring partner available. She bit back the vicious retorts on her tongue, if he'd been anyone else his words would have meant shit, but Azazel rarely said anything and when he did, what he said had meaning.

"You're getting stronger," Azazel said.

"Too slowly for my own liking," Bella replied.

"Give it time," he told her, voice like quiet thunder, "don't rush it and it will be well worth it." she was steadily gaining her weight back, Nimueh and the others were weaning her back onto food. She could feel the cool breeze from the vents on her heated skin, and she sighed mopping up her sweat with a towel.

He left her alone for a moment to dwell in silence. But she didn't dwell for too long, her memories were too close to the surface for her to be lost in thought for more than ten minutes at a time, and it was something she would have to get over like she'd done for all these years.

She hated to admit she was having a harder time coping this time around, and it would seriously mess with her schedule if she was here until the end of the month. She had another two weeks tops, and by then hopefully she will have gained enough strength to travel.

Where she was going heartache would be the end result, no matter what happened. And she had tried so damn hard to keep herself from that hurt but hadn't wholly succeeded.

It still lingered underneath the surface and the hard concrete she'd built on top of those feelings. She left the training room with a heavier heart and mind than when she'd arrived.

Nimueh was surrounded by books and other paraphernalia when she got back, the psychic barely spared her a glance, keeping her eyes on the book she was studying.

Platinum white hair scooped into a messy knot, her black tank top exposing her pale white skin, unmarked and perfect. "Azazel gave me a notice of improvement," Bella announced.

"That's good," Nimueh muttered, engrossed in her book, "at least you warranted a response. His saying something really means you're shaping up."

"Too slow," Bella replied, "if only my body would catch up to my head..." Nimueh's head came up them and swiveled to look her best friend dead in the eye. A grim seriousness on her face.

"Has it ever occurred to you that your mental health as a profound impact on your physical?" Nimueh said sounding detached.

"I'm well aware," Bella retorted, "but it doesn't mean that my body can't get better."

"No, of course it doesn't," Nimueh replied, "it only means it will take you longer to recover."

"Look, I've admitted that I have problem," Bella said, "I'm going back to finally face up to it, what more can I do?"

"Admit to the real problems," Nimueh went on, "the fact that you can barely sleep, that you barely ate before you were taken and you're an emotional cripple." Bella could easily admit that Nimueh was right...but it didn't make the truth any less bitter.

Nimueh's blunt and hard truths were easy to deal with, brutal honesty she could take in, but it was the emotional crap that threw her for a loop. "Did you know that he loved me?" Bella finally asked.

"Ah the million dollar question," Nimueh replied, "Yes I did. And you can't say that I didn't warn you."

"You didn't tell me he was in fucking love with me!" Bella retorted, "And because of circumstances he's probably thinking I left him."

"Fate, thy cruel and heartless harpy," Nimueh said melodramatically, staring theatrically into the distance before turning her cool eyes on her cousin. "But it was not I who told you to come to New York," Nimueh told her.

"There's bigger things than my nonexistent love life going on right now," Bella said, "and you know full well I couldn't delay any longer."

"What do you think I've been doing all day?" Nimueh replied, holding up one of her books, "I'm researching the very reason you came here in the first place!" Bella sighed, feeling more tired than she had in a long time.

"Go get some sleep," Nimueh told her, "I can see that you need it. But shower first, I don't want the stench of your workout all over my nice clean sheets."

Memories were a tricky thing. Fickle and sneaky little buggers, one would think they were gone and the next minute they're popping up behind you screaming, 'Boo!'.

Nowadays, it seems she was plagued by nothing but memories. Terrible vivid memories.

Like at the beginning of Alice in Wonderland, when Alice has repeated flashbacks in her sleep of her time in Wonderland but has a difficult time actually remembering whether or not the events that keep recurring in her dreams are real.

Unfortunately for Bella...this was nothing like that. And now, it was a matter of coping and she refused to do that by way of drugs. Her father had already sent several vials of a potent sleeping draught, along with specific instructions on how to brew her own, copied from the family Grimoire.

She kept the recipe just in case and stowed away the vials for emergency purposes. Mundane sleep aids hadn't worked in the past and she'd already tried exhausting herself into a dreamless sleep.

The nightmares were inescapable, a cold iron cage much like the one she'd gotten acquainted with back in Bahumat's twisted palace. She glanced down at her hands at the faint scars that were a few months old, where the ridges of the Raegar demon's spine had cut into her skin.

Getting back into the field after the night of the gala was another one of realities bitter reminders, that fairy tales didn't exist...at least, not the nice ones that ended in a lavish wedding and true love's kiss, that all good things were brief and had to come to an end.

And that had been driven home in the event of Joey's death.

Jasper's confession still haunted her, replaying sometimes in her nightmares, before becoming twisted and dark, spoiled by her memories.

There was laughter on the TV screen, one of the characters had said something witty and funny, cuing the canned audience.

Bella had to finally come to terms with the fact that she was broken. After all, the first step to recovery was admittance.

* * *

**Nyx: So quick mythology note: Perses is the Titan of Destruction; Considering that I find the term 'God of War' used over and over again I came up with something different, seeing as the Grecian gods are spoken of with a positive connotation with the whole 'defeating the evil Titans' thing. And after that educational tidbit I have nothing more to say. **

**Puff: Really?**

**Nyx: Really really. I mean, you guys tell me what you think, or don't, I'll update anyways doesn't matter. But I still appreciate the feedback. Like bathe-you-in-cupcakes-and-shower-you-with-giggles type of appreciation. **

**Puff: Why cupcakes? Why not bacon? Everybody loves bacon.**

**Nyx: Not vegetarians. **

**Puff: They don't count.**


	5. Meo

**Nyx: I've never been called a genius before. Thank you to the person that did. **

**Puff: *snort* If only she (or he) knew you...**

**Nyx: Fuck off, I get better grades than you do. **

**Puff: I don't even go to school!**

**Nyx: Precisely! Now, anything you recognize, I probably don't own. OCs are mine though, unless I say otherwise. **

* * *

_A hundred days have made me older_  
_Since the last time that I saw your pretty face_  
_A thousand lies have made me colder_  
_And I don't think I can look at this the same_  
_But all the miles that separate_  
_Disappear now when I'm dreaming of your face_

_-Here Without You, 3 Doors Down_

* * *

Chapter 5. Meo

_March_

"I'm surprised at how well you're holding up," Peter commented, licking his mouth clean from his kill.

"I'm not," Jasper admitted. Peter blinked.

"That there just proves that you are," Peter replied.

"Jeez Peter, would you stop with the cryptic bullshit?" Jasper demanded. "If I wanted my fortune told I'd ask your wife." Peter's expression sobered.

"Charlotte may have that women's intuition that freaks everybody out Jasper, but don't you ever compare her even in the smallest way to that shrimp you were married to."

"You know very well I only married her to get everyone off my back," Jasper replied. More evidence of the wool they'd pulled over his eyes. Forcing him to marry someone he didn't even love, not like that anyway. Not like he loved Bella. "And I'm glad you see that you grew out of that," Peter replied.

"You're acting like I'm a teenager going through a phase," Jasper spat, he was feeling irritable, itchy...aggressive. Peter eyed him with a bit of unease. Sometimes he wondered how his creator hadn't gone completely age-crazy, he certainly had fucking reason to. But Jasper had always been strong of will, with enough tenacity to rival a bull.

And Peter could see the change in him, he had known the man for so damn long he could read him like a book. He'd discussed with his wife the attention Jasper paid to this...Bella.

Jasper had mentioned her in passing, but even through the tiny little details he'd let slip, Peter could already tell Bella was a formidable character. Charlotte had confirmed so, and couldn't wait to meet the girl who'd captured the heart of Perses. "You've changed," Peter commented, "I can tell."

"Finally notice my new hair cut did you?" Jasper joked, though there was no humor in it.

"It's not just the diet change J," Peter told him, "you've _grown_." it was so blatantly obvious now that Peter had mentioned it, he wanted to slap himself. Jasper gave his brother a sideways glance. Jasper was half an inch taller, his hair longer and a formidable strength had already been added to his warrior body.

Their kind wasn't supposed to change physically, their venom was like formaldehyde; preserving, perfecting...freezing. But Jasper had changed, albeit minutely but it was still a goddamn miracle. "Huh," Jasper said, "I've never noticed." Peter decided to change the subject.

"Tell me more about this...Bella," Peter asked. Jasper stiffened at little at her name before speaking.

"She's Edward's ex," he said tersely.

"Well hell," Peter said, the pieces clicking into place. Jasper had given him the rundown on the entire story and Charlotte had filled in the minute details with her powers of deduction. "How the hell did you get involved with ginger's lost love?"

"Long story," Jasper muttered, his eyes going hard and then he stopped and put his hand to his throat.

The necklace he'd finally begun to wear, that Bella had given him had warmed underneath his shirt and Jasper turned to see that he had involuntarily led them to Bella's old apartment building... and there were demons here.

The scent made his hackles raise, Peter began to go on the alert. "We need to get out of here," Jasper muttered, knowing that taking a chance against one or two would be signing a death warrant. Jasper reached out with his senses, tasting the darkness that surrounded the building and tainted Bella's door.

Suspicion began to cloud his mind as he and his brother turned on their heels and ran back the way they came towards uptown. All the while, anger was building in his stomach, a rage beginning to bubble underneath his skin like nothing he'd ever experienced before. And when he met Charlotte's somber gaze that delivered all the pieces he need to complete with her silence...he crumbled.

_**x-x-x**_

He'd gone alone to Forks, respecting the vow of silence Bella and her father had taken to protect the society they lived in. Peter didn't like it, after last night's experience, but Jasper had insisted and now he stood on the Warlock's porch ready to tell him that he suspected that his daughter had been taken and Jasper berated himself from not going to Bella's apartment sooner.

He couldn't fucking stand that he should have known she was not so cruel as to leave him after such a declaration of total vulnerability, she hated hypocrites. Jasper wished briefly that crying wasn't such a human luxury, he wished he could cry, for his foolishness.

And now, his love was enduring hell Lord-knows-where. The door opened to reveal a more disheveled Charlie than Jasper was used to seeing. Like his brother, Charlie retained a crispness reminiscent of the gallant eighteen-hundreds, the era of which Jasper had grown up in.

Now, Charlie looked almost...broken. His eyes were feverish, his face unshaven, his tie askew and his suit mismatched. "I know why you're here," Charlie said, his voice so gravelly it sounded like he had taken up smoking several packs a day over the past few months.

"Charlie...I'm so sorry," Jasper's voice shook, despite his trying to hold back.

"So am I," Charlie whispered. "So am I." the man gave Jasper his back as he went inside the house, and the vampire followed. "We're conducting searches for her right now, attempting to convince the High Council to open a doorway to the outreaching dimensions."

"Then you know she was taken by-?"

"Demons," Charlie interrupted darkly, "I have a pretty good suspicion of who exactly took her. But the High Council doesn't listen to suspicion. They only listen to hard evidence and common sense."

"Fuck them," Jasper said harshly, "your daughter is missing."

"They control inter dimensional traffic and travel," Charlie said sternly, "I can't very well defy the only people that can give me the portal I need."

"Can't you draw one up yourself?" Jasper asked, "You're a Warlock."

"Not with white magic boy," Charlie replied, "and I'm not tainting my house with filthy black magic. That shit _sticks_." Jasper felt a presence breeze behind him and then heard the swinging of the kitchen door.

"I'd hafta agree with ya, guv'nor," the Cockney accent of Dex reached them from behind the thin wooden barrier. "Feels like spiders it does, crawls into your undies and makes ya feel all spooky inside." Jasper wanted to tear the whole forest apart, but even that sort of venting wouldn't have made him feel better.

He needed to fight. He needed to _kill_.

"You said you knew who took her."

"No, I said that I suspected," Charlie corrected, "And if my suspicions are correct, I will make him rue the day he took my little girl." the Warlock's eyes flashed violet with power, sending chills down Jasper's spine.

He'd seen war, but that didn't mean he'd seen all there was to see. The world was full of ugly, ugly he hadn't known until Bella walked back into his life. The incident with the Evrat demon back in September was proof of that. "I'll find a way to help you, sir," Jasper said sincerely. Charlie chuckled, a weary tired sound.

"Oh Jasper," Charlie said, "where we're going, only your bones will come back."

_**x-x-x**_

"You're not makin' any goddamned sense!" Peter said, his accent thickening as he got more agitated. Jasper just threw another t-shirt into the bag.

"I have to find her," Jasper said, "she's out there somewhere Peter!"

"You're outta your fuckin' mind if you think I'm just gonna stand by and watch you run all over like a goddamn headless chicken, after what we almost encountered yesterday," Peter told him, though he didn't even know what the_ what _was.

"Then don't look," Jasper retorted.

"Jasper, be smart about this," Charlotte put her two cents in, "you don't even know where you're goin'."

"I'll start south then," Jasper snapped, "work my way north from there."

"If your girl really was taken then you ain't got that kind of time," Charlotte said, snapping him out of his frenzy. Charlotte had a very strong intuition, like the fabled mother's sense, except Charlotte was about as maternal as he was but was just as clever if not more.

Jasper had made a point to listen to her after all these years, and she'd never been wrong about a goddamn thing...not yet. "Where do you suggest I start then?" he wheedled. Charlotte shook her head, her blonde curls whipping about her face.

"You know it don't work that way," she said, "but if you sit tight, and wait, maybe you'll get a clue or somethin'. You said you went to talk to her father, he'll tell you if he hears anything." Jasper forced himself to listen.

Charlotte was acting as the voice of reason, which he needed in this case.

The fight left him, his shoulders sagging with resignation. "Damn you Charlotte," he said half-heartedly.

"Oh shut it, you know I'm right," she said with a roll of her eyes. "One day Jasper, you'll meet a woman that'll bring you to your knees."

"I think Jasper's already there," Peter teased with a grin just as a burning pain hit him squarely in the stomach and began to radiate out from there.

Seizing the cold lump that was his heart and squeezing; taking his inactive lungs in hand and stretching.

Jasper couldn't even cry out, or yell, the pain taking him by surprise. It bled into every part of his body, gnashing at his toes, grinding into his head before finally settling into his heart.

He vaguely registered his name being called, and somehow he'd ended up on the floor, laying there perfectly still while waiting for it all to come to a stop. And in the recesses of his mind he could hear the screams.

* * *

**Nyx: Thoughts?**

**Puff: Chinese food, ooh rubber bands! I like butterflies...**

**Nyx: Not yours Puff. Theirs. *gestures to readers***

**Puff: Oh, then why didn't you just say that in the first place?**


	6. Itio

**Nyx: No long intro today.**

**Puff: Eating broccoli makes me sad.**

**Nyx: So, blah blah blah, don't own, whatever.**

* * *

_I walk a lonely road_  
_The only one that I have ever known_  
_Don't know where it goes_  
_But it's home to me and I walk alone_

_I walk this empty street_  
_On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams_  
_When the city sleeps_  
_And I'm the only one and I walk alone_

_-Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Green Day_

* * *

Chapter 6. Itio

She coughed and sputtered up dirty water while crawling out of the Hudson River. Similar sounds were coming from the Reaper to her right and she glared at him. "I blame you for this," she panted, feeling almost drunk as she got to her feet.

Ringing polluted water out of her hair she flopped on the embankment, weary after the hours' events. "I blame me for this too," Liam was a very headstrong boy of eighteen who lived in Brooklyn and didn't have much purpose in his life until he ran across several Reapers carrying out a hunt for a presumed serial killer that turned out to be a demented wizard carrying out crackpot rituals from another crackpot's book.

Daniil crawled up on the embankment beside them, hacking and spitting. Carrie looked even smaller, shivering from the cool city breeze. "Well that was a waste of time," Daniil said when he'd finished coughing up his lungs. "And I still have blood underneath my nails."

"Calm down diva queen," Bella said, finally getting her breath back, "I'm sure you'll find time for a fresh manicure later on in the week." her comment lightened the mood, making everyone present snort and chuckle.

Liam looked up, observing the nighttime sky, "I better get home. Lord knows my mom probably already called the cops."

"Nobody here is stopping you," Bella said quietly, "Go." Liam gave her a look that was indecipherable before getting to his feet and walking towards the highway.

"I better get home too," Carrie said softly, ringing out her hair that looked blood red while dripping wet. "I have a class tomorrow afternoon."

"And I must feed," Daniil ran his tongue down the length of one of his fangs, blue-black veins already beginning to creep up his neck out of the collar of his black shirt.

"Stick to the slums this time," Carrie scolded him.

"Rich people taste better," Daniil told her.

"The poor won't be missed," Bella retorted.

"That's sad," Carrie lamented.

"It is sad," Bella agreed, "a sad truth."

"Sit here and argue over who I eat all you want," Daniil said, all the while getting to his feet, "I'm leaving." he was gone in a flash, there one minute and gone the next.

"Sometimes he makes me sick," Carrie said, climbing further up the embankment, "I feel bad leaving you alone, B, but-"

"Go on," Bella told her, "I'll go on patrol for a couple of hours."

"You sure?" Carrie frowned, "After that whole ordeal? You need to rest."

"I'll be fine," Bella insisted, "go home." Carrie's eyes narrowed but she complied anyway, like Liam, making straight for the highway before melting into the shadows. It was true that she needed to sleep; depriving herself of rest wasn't going to help her make a full recovery but she felt she couldn't sleep.

The water looked dark now and had calmed after the troupe of Reapers had waded through it after their excursion. The river was a long stretch of black glass, reflecting back the lights of the city. Manhattan was a glorious light fixture, so much so the stars disappeared underneath the weight of the light pollution.

Humans and their goddamned light.

Pulling herself out of her thoughts she also headed towards the highway, ducking into Lincoln Tunnel and narrowly avoiding oncoming traffic. At two o' clock in the morning the roads were still alive with drivers and mortals out on the town.

It truly was the city that never slept, and she found the irony potent. All of them were driving too fast to notice the girl dressed in snug-fitting black be there one minute and vanished the next. She reappeared in the shadow of a skyscraper, her Redeye turning the world crimson and black. In the dark her eyes almost glowed, scaring off potential rapists and murderers, recognizing the 'Don't-fuck-with-me' vibes and sensing danger.

She suddenly stopped, and the footsteps behind her stopped as well. _Oh goody_, she thought and took an abrupt turn down an alley and melted into shadow. Footsteps stuttered, her pursuer confused before he obviously decided to follow anyway and ended up with cold chain link wrapped around his neck. The metal made of an icy silver-steel that crept into his bones and made him sweat in terror.

The girl on the other end of the weapon held the solid black handle in one hand while the other end of the chain dangled a finely curved blade, expertly made and beautiful in it's deadliness. "Nice try," she smirked, red eyes turning violet as dark energy crawled up the blade and into his throat, paralyzing the would-be rapist. He went limp, eyes rolling back to reveal the whites and the chain dissolved.

She left the body where it was, predicting he'd be eaten before the night was done. Crossing onto another road, and expertly avoiding a few oncoming cars, scaled a building to get an overhead view.

She noticed a dark figure on another rooftop, distant but she'd recognize him anywhere. "Azazel," she said, walking out of the air to stand beside him. He only nodded in return. He was watching a drug deal, "They think they're so inconspicuous don't they?" Azazel asked.

"Amusing isn't it?" she replied.

"Hilarious," he deadpanned. Bella pulled her bow from the shadows and shot the dealers once the junkie had disappeared around the corner.

"Have you told her yet?" Bella asked him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Azazel said coolly.

"Denial doesn't look good on you, Z," Bella said, "I know you've been hiding this for quite a while." the only reply she got was a sigh.

"Am I that obvious?"

"Oh no, believe me you're the farthest from obvious someone could be," she said, "it took me a little while to figure it out. You're a tough nut to crack."

"I was in denial," Azazel told her, voice going quiet, "for a very long time. I didn't believe it was possible for my kind to fall in love. All the stories went against it, all the facts said 'no'."

"You're still human, Z," Bella replied.

"Only half," Azazel added ruefully.

"A potent half," Bella supplied, "you're more human than you think. You consciously make an effort to not be like your father."

"You're getting soft on me," Azazel said.

"I'm not the one who's in love here," Bella retorted.

"That doesn't make me soft," he countered.

"Oh, it does," Bella nodded sagely, "like ice cream."

"This is ridiculous," Azazel scorned, rolling his eyes.

"If you think so then I was wrong," Bella told him, "and you don't truly care for her the way I think that you do." Azazel turned on her, fire blazing in his violet eyes.

"Don't you dare imply that I don't," he snarled.

"Then tell her," Bella responded in-kind, "don't you think she deserves to know?"

"Of course she does," Azazel spat, "but to confess like that, it leaves me vulnerable to attack. Weak."

"She's not your mother, Z," Bella told him, "she's not your father either."

"I'm very well aware of that," Azazel deadpanned, "_trust_ me."

"Then tell her," Bella said.

"She won't accept me," Azazel shook his head and Bella raised an eyebrow at him. Azazel was generally conceived as the strong and silent type. An emotionless wall of strength, that couldn't be touched. But Bella should have realized that despite Azazel's mixed blood, he was still afraid of rejection, like any other man.

And talking to him put things into such perspective that her stomach began to flip and her insides felt like they'd been stolen, filled with lead and returned. "You'd be surprised," was all she said.

_**x-x-x**_

"You're leaving already?" Carrie whined, watching from the doorway while Bella packed several change of clothes into a bag, along with a good amount of cash, a few snacks and a bottle of water. The pack was small enough to attach to her back, but not too heavy. "I'll be back," Bella said, lacing up her boots.

"When?" Carrie asked.

"Soon," Bella replied vaguely. "And aren't you supposed to be in class?"

"Shit!" Carrie exclaimed. The witch was gone in a matter of seconds, down the stairs and out the door in a blink. Bella picked up her helmet and her bag, made sure the guest bedroom was left in pristine condition before turning on her heel.

Max was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, overlarge jacket and all, and looking the tiniest bit anxious. "Can I help you?" Bella asked.

"Is it true you're leaving?" Max asked.

"Yes," Bella answered.

"Where are you going?" the girl asked her. Bella raised an eyebrow at her bluntness, simultaneously impressed and suspicious.

"South. Why?" it appeared it was the answer Max was looking for.

"How far south?"

"Phoenix," Bella replied. Max really started to look anxious and took a breath.

"I want to come with you," Max told her and Bella's eyebrows shot up to her hairline. It was written plain as day on Max's usually inscrutable face that she was fighting an inner battle, wrestling with past memories and that she had come to a conclusion not too long ago but was fighting against indecision.

"Look, I don't take passengers-"

"I really need a ride, okay," Max said, "I have cash. I'll pay for gas, all I ask is that you drop me off in Mesa. If you're not planning on coming back to New York after taking care of whatever it is you need to take care of then fine. I'll find my own way home."

Bella's lip was half-curled into a smirk, quite impressed with the girl's spirit and lifted her chin. "Alright, you can come on one condition," Bella said, "you tell me why you're wearing a jacket in ninety-five degree weather." Max raised her eyebrows this time, drawing attention to the sweat on her forehead and neck.

Max looked her over and obviously coming to a decision gave her fellow Reaper a nod and held out her hand, "Deal."

* * *

**Nyx: Eh, a little short this week. I'm trying to be as consistent with length as possible.**

**Puff: *puts a blonde wig on his head* How do I look?**

**Nyx: Like a really ugly blonde. **

**Puff: Hm...**

**Nyx: So, review? We'll hear a little more from Jasper next chapter. **


	7. Fractus

**Nyx: So...this week was fairly interesting. I narrowly escaped with my life.**

**Puff: Oh please, your mom just wanted to give you a make-over. **

**Nyx: I like my face just the way it is. **

**Puff: You need new clothes.**

**Nyx: My clothes are just fine. Now, I don't own anything you may recognize, music and stuff, blah blah blah. **

* * *

_Come on now, who do you,  
who do you, who do you,  
who do you think you are?  
Ha ha ha bless your soul  
You really think you're in control_

_Well, I think you're crazy_  
_I think you're crazy_  
_I think you're crazy_  
_Just like me_

_-Crazy, Gnarls Barkley_

* * *

Chapter 7. Fractus

_April_

He never stopped hurting. Eventually the pain lessened enough to the point where he could think apart from it, but it had ripped wide hole in his chest shredding nearly everything in its path. Leaving his heart whole enough to endure it and be crippled.

And he still ached, but it had become so much worse. Sitting on the couch didn't lessen the pain anymore than drinking deer's blood had. He'd tried, killing off a doe and her baby before realizing that the blood didn't help either.

Human blood kept his head clear, but it brought the pain into so much more focus.

He couldn't project anymore.

Thoughts too clouded, his own consciousness trying to revert back into a completely unfeeling state in order to protect his psyche from the pain. And there was nothing for it.

His temper grew shorter by the day, and it took him longer and longer to avoid causing massacres in the street, to gather his wits and bring himself to heel.

_I am the master of my own body. I am the master of my own mind, _he tried telling himself but a dark little voice in the back of his mind that he had not heard for a long time spoke up. _Yeah, keep telling yourself that shithead._

_You don't rule me._

_I am you_, was the reply.

_I buried you._

_Then I am the dead risen_, he was told.

_Dead men tell no tales._

_Lie. Dead men tell many stories, through their past deeds and quotes. There's always a legacy._

_And what is my legacy? Blood, death and pain? Bending my will to evil?_

_It's called war, dumbass. You lived with it, you survived. Get off your ass and stop whining_, came the retort.

_This is the only way I can stay whole_, he argued.

_You haven't been whole for damn near sixty-seven years_, was the retort. _Keep part of you in a cage and guess what happens? You die. _

_Death doesn't come for men like me. _

_But I'm not a man._

_Then what am I?_

_You're a Titan. _

_I'm no Titan._

_Then what are you?_

_Didn't I just ask the same damn question?_

_Just answer it dumbass. _

_I am...this. . . ._

"Jasper get off your ass and go hunt," Peter said. Jasper didn't respond, black eyes staring into space much like his ex-wife used to do. Peter stood in front of him and waved his hand in front of his unresponsive face. The man didn't even blink, flinch or twitch.

"Char, I think he's worse," Peter called to his wife in the other room, concerned over the deep black his brother's eyes had taken on. You couldn't even see where the iris began and the pupil ended.

If he didn't feed, eventually his entire eye would be covered in the demonic black of an out of control vampire, and there would be no stopping him from massacring an entire sector of the city. Charlotte sauntered into the room, blonde curls bouncing against her breasts and Peter watched her jiggle like a starving man.

His wife promptly slapped him on the cheek, "Pervert," she scolded, "we got a crisis here." she said, gesturing to Jasper sitting like a statue in his bare room.

"Yeah," Peter nodded and looked around, "you'd think he'd learn to decorate."

Charlotte rolled her eyes, "I'll go raid a clinic. Stay here and make sure he doesn't get up to any monkey business," she said.

"Yes dear," Peter replied; he stopped his wife in her tracks and planted a kiss on her mouth, she smiled and pecked him on the cheek then turned to leave. Peter turned his attention back to his brother, sitting on his bed looking like a hollow shell.

Before he'd gone catatonic he had tried to get back on the veggie diet...but for what Peter didn't know. Char suspected he was trying to cure something, though she couldn't put a finger on what. The man didn't talk about his problems, so it wasn't a wonder that neither he nor Charlotte knew what in the hell was wrong with him.

He'd been sitting here since Easter, and it was already mid-April. And every day his eyes grew darker, though his body sitting immobile, not expending so much energy slowed the process but it didn't mean that when he finally came to he'd be docile.

Peter stood in Jasper's line of sight, cocking his head to the side, curious red eyes boring into the face of his creator. "I know you're in there," Peter said quietly, "and I know that somewhere in there...you can understand what I'm saying." For a long time they both sat in silence.

Jasper in a silent war, attempting to keep himself from flying apart and losing what little sanity he had left. From behind his eyes he could see the shock, the desolation, the fear in her eyes and her words echoed in his head, when he told her that he loved her. _"You shouldn't." _

"_I can't help it,"_ he had said. And it was true. He _couldn't_ help it, he hadn't been able to help falling in love with her. From the moment that she laughed, that day at the Fall Festival, he had been hers. All hers for the taking.

And yet she'd walked away. _If you were in her shoes what would you have done?_ he asked himself.

_I..._

_Ah, he's at a loss for words. _

_Just give me a moment to think_, he snapped.

_Now does he understand how the lady feels?_ He did. Goddammit, that's what she'd asked for. _Besides, you insecure dumbass, she was kidnapped by demons. Get a fucking grip. _

_I wish I could._

_You're stronger than this. . . ._

Peter felt odd just standing here watching his brother undergo some serious mental wars, wishing he could hear just what in the Sam Hill he was thinking so damn hard about. His irises were just a shade away from black, and it wouldn't be long before the black began to cover the whites of his eyes.

Then Jasper would be lost to them, until he found the will to come back to the surface and Peter prayed that that would not happen. Charlotte came back, setting the bag over her shoulder on the floor and observing their positions.

"No change?" she asked. Peter's only answer was a silent shake of the head. Charlotte's brows furrowed and her mouth turned down into a frown, concern clouding her face.

"C'mere," Peter urged, spreading his arms. Charlotte complied, sighing once safely in his embrace. Peter rested his cheek atop her blonde head, "We'll get through this," he murmured, "_he'll_ get through this."

"I know he will," she said softly against his chest, "but it doesn't make me any less afraid for him."

"It's all about patience," he said, pressing his lips to her head. _Patience_, he thought.

Charlotte waved the bag underneath Jasper's nose, wafting the smell of human blood about the room. At this point, being so thirsty, he should be able to smell the blood as if the plastic were nonexistent but he didn't even twitch. Char growled a little in frustration, putting the bag away. "He's hopeless," Charlotte cried, throwing up her hands.

"Patience," Peter reminded her, just as there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it," he said before she could say a word, "besides, it's your turn to babysit." Charlotte rolled her eyes and folded her arms. Peter didn't recognize the scent on the other side of the door, but it had an odd tang to it...like the human on the other side wasn't quite human.

The man was tall, several inches taller than Peter, dressed in a casual black suit and couldn't have been no older than twenty-six, but there was an age in his eyes that you didn't see often in humans. His curly brown hair complemented the stubble that threatened to become a beard.

All in all, he was quite handsome for a human. "Are you going to keep standing there, or are you going to let me in?" he demanded, exuding an aura of authority as he did so. Without consciously deciding so, Peter stepped aside to let him in and their unexpected guest walked right on into the apartment, observing his surroundings. "Hmm...a downgrade it may be, but it's...cozy," the man mused.

"If you don't mind me asking," Peter spoke up, "who the hell are you?"

"Who I am is of no consequence to you Mister Whitlock," addressed the stranger and Peter blinked, "at least...not at the moment." the stranger smirked and walked straight into the bedroom where Jasper was, where Charlotte was keeping watch. He tipped an imaginary hat, fingers brushing an invisible brim.

"Miss," the stranger said politely before glancing over the silent soldier. "My my, he is in a bad way isn't he?" he tsked. Charlotte straightened and looked him dead in the face, not saying a word but evaluating him from head to toe, before making a silent decision, giving him a nod and walking from the room, giving the stranger his time with Jasper.

As soon as the door was shut, and Peter's quiet protests muffled, Charlie conjured a chair, sitting eye-level with the Titan who was staring dead off into space, eyes black with an ever growing thirst. _You're stronger than this...You are worth it...Stronger than this..._the ache was coming back, the pain creeped up on him this time. Gradually getting stronger until it was near-crippling.

The face of Charlie Swan came into focus and so did his scent. Jasper gritted his teeth, his throat feeling like it was about to tear every time he swallowed even a tidbit of venom. "Mister Whitlock," Charlie greeted him and then glanced at a bag thrown into the corner. Jasper didn't dare speak, lest he taste the air and attack, so he gave a nod of acknowledgement.

"Looking a little worse for wear, I see," Charlie went on, "though I fail to see how this encourages your cause." Jasper could only grunt in answer. The door opened and Charlotte came through with a warm thermos full of blood. It took all of his willpower not to crush the damned thing and hold it to his lips.

He drank greedily while Charlie watched in silence, face completely free of any expression. _Bella used to look like that all the time_, he thought errantly.

"Are you quite finished?" Charlie asked.

"I'll get something else later," Jasper rasped, "just tell me what you know."

"Knowledge comes at a price," Charlie said solemnly, "remember that." Jasper looked the Warlock steadily in the eye.

"Right now I don't care about the consequences, I just want to _know something_."

"And you will," Charlie said, taking a moment's pause before saying, "we found her." Jasper froze.

"She was...in terrible shape. The only reason I did not tell you sooner was because of her...condition." Jasper couldn't move, couldn't breathe, could barely think and he could tell that Peter and Charlotte waited with bated breath just outside the bedroom. "For right now, she is bedridden to gather her strength."

"How soon can I see her?" Jasper asked, finally finding his voice.

"I'd give it a week," Charlie said, "she needs to rest, which she can't do if you are present."

"What makes you say that?" Jasper frowned.

"I'll keep that to myself," Charlie smirked, coming to a stand and the chair dissolving as he did so. "In the meantime, take care of yourself. I'll send you the address when it is time."

"She's not staying with you in Forks?" Jasper asked.

"No," Charlie replied shortly, taking measured strides towards the front door, "Oh and before I forget, a package arrived for you. It must have gotten lost in the mail, considering it's stamped with all sorts of exotic things." Charlie moved the box towards him.

"Farewell, Jasper, Mr. and Mrs. Whitlock. I trust I'll be seeing you soon." and with that, Charlie was gone.

* * *

**Nyx: Chapter seven, there it is. **

**Puff: Charlie acting all mysterious...we should watch Hotel Transylvania. **

**Nyx: All in good time Puff. Review?**


	8. Liberes

**Nyx: Heh...so I kinda insulted my old theater teacher on Facebook. Pretty sure she'll be talking crap about me come the next school year. **

**Puff: She's probably already complaining to her favorites. You humans and your social networks. I prefer the company of doughnuts instead. **

**Nyx: Your addiction is getting a little out of hand, you got banned from like four shops this week. **

**Puff: I'm fine. I can stop when I want to.**

**Nyx: Where have I heard that before? So I don't own anything you may recognize, all music and such belongs to it's respective owners, blah blah blah.**

* * *

_At the end of the world_  
_Or the last thing I see_  
_You are_  
_Never coming home_  
_Never coming home_  
_Could I? Should I?_  
_And all the things that you never ever told me_  
_And all the smiles that are never ever..._  
_Ever..._

_Get the feeling that you're never_  
_All alone and I remember now_  
_At the top of my lungs in my arms she dies_  
_She dies_

_-The Ghost of You, My Chemical Romance_

* * *

Chapter 8. Liberes

The receptionist looked up at her approach. "Can I help you?" she asked in a high reedy voice, adjusting her bifocals. "I'm here to see Renee. Renee Duchamps née Swan?" the receptionist typed in a few things, "May I ask who's visiting?"

"Her daughter," Bella replied. The receptionist typed again.

"I need to see some ID," Bella pulled out her drivers license. The receptionist looked at it, looked at her face and typed some more. "Take a seat please," she said. Max had settled into one of the waiting room chairs and began picking at her nails, resolving to be waiting for a little while.

Bella sighed and went to sit next to her, her butt silently singing a Hallelujah chorus after hours on a motorcycle. Usually she could sit on it just fine and not get 'saddle sore' but with an extra passenger...seating arrangements had to change.

"Look...I understand if you wanna make me wait outside, or I could take a taxi-"

"I promised to drop you off in Mesa, and drop you off I will," Bella interrupted, "this won't take very long." Max said nothing, a level of understanding in her eyes that Bella could almost appreciate.

Bella was feeling pretty wired, after all she hadn't set foot in this waiting room for several years, and the last time she had, she'd cracked before she even got to go beyond the doors into the wings.

A doctor came by, clipboard and all, and called her name. Bella stood and followed him down corridor after corridor, the endless white searing her retinas and she blinked furiously. All the while the doctor was speaking to her, "This is a really momentus occasion," he was saying, "she hasn't has a visitor in..."

"Yeah yeah yeah," Bella cut him off, "what else you got for me doc?"

"You do realize she's been unresponsive for the past eight years?" the doctor fixed with her a look. Bella internally winced. _And he said it anyway_, she deadpanned.

"Yes, doesn't mean I don't want to see her."

"But why now?" he asked her, frowning, confusion evident on his face.

"Does a daughter need a reason to visit her mother?" Bella retorted, raising an eyebrow.

"Miss Swan, I don't think you understand," the doctor said, "this woman was found in a severely broken state, completely mentally destroyed. All of our efforts have been fruitless, we've tried all sorts of medication and techniques to get her to speak, move and eat on her own. We've put this woman on a feeding tube-!"

"And I appreciate your efforts doctor," Bella cut him off, not wanting to hear anymore. She was barely holding it together as it was. "But...you have to understand that I finally got the balls to come see my mom," she confessed to this complete stranger, "so please don't...don't spoil this for me." the doctor's face was filled with compassion, and maybe even pity.

He opened the door and a sliver of light fell across the hallway. "Renee, you have a visitor," he called into the room, and of course there was no response. Bella stepped into the white room cautiously.

It was completely bare save for a vase full of flowers that were half-dead, a few drawings that looked like a five-year-old had gotten a little too enthusiastic with the materials given to him or her, most of which involving glitter or paint.

And the woman sitting the middle of it, perfectly still in her wheel chair, looked hollowed out and half-dead.

For so long Bella had held the image of her radiant mother in her head, beautiful eccentric Renee.

A full-blooded enchantress, who'd dazzled every person she passed on the street or met in person. Her green-grey eyes were dull now and looked more like glass marbles than they did living tissue. Her chestnut hair, once thick and beautiful was thin, lank and dead. The nurses hadn't bothered cutting it, and instead chose to leave her be.

She was attached to an IV to keep her hydrated, though it did little to make her at least look healthy. The woman looked decayed, and much older than she really was. Bella sat on the bed, Renee didn't move nor acknowledge that she knew someone else was in the room.

Her eyes were completely blank and guileless, there was no personality to her now like she'd been lobotomized...broken completely. Bella took in a breath, swallowing the lump in her throat.

"Hi mom," she said. Nothing. "Been a long time," Bella added and again there was no reply, "you look like shit." She rested her chin in her hands, propped up on her knees.

"Dad misses you," she told her, "we both do." Renee just blinked guilelessly out the window. There was nothing in her eyes, not even a spark or the barest hint of recognition. Nothing. Her vision became warped and distorted by the tears that welled up in her eyes but it was several minutes before she allowed them to escape, and when she did, the tears only came faster.

"I'm sorry," she finally said after a long period of silence, "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I failed you. I-I never should have..." Bella couldn't speak further, her hand covering her mouth in an effort to keep the sounds of her anguish from escaping.

Her sobs becoming strangled in her throat and coming out as whimpers. "I tried...so hard," she said through her tears, "I tried to warn you...but you didn't listen. Why didn't you listen? You stupid, foolish woman." Resting her forehead in her hands, Bella continued to cry.

She cried for her mother, who'd been disillusioned and had gambled everything for the attention of a man; she cried for her father, his heart had taken the most beatings and the brunt of the consequences of his ex-wife's actions; she cried for Jasper, who couldn't cry for himself, and all he'd endured, and for the heartbreak she'd no doubt inflicted upon him as had been inflicted upon her, which was never something she had wanted.

And for the very first time in years, she cried for herself.

All the while, Renee didn't move and was as silent as the stars. When the police had found her all those years ago, she wouldn't have registered a freight train coming straight at her face, Renee had been dead to the world and Bella was nowhere to be found, only to turn up years later on the side of the road, numb and shaking.

She sat for what felt like hours, crying and attempting to keep the sounds of her pain under control, the memories beating against her skull in a vain attempt to escape the barriers she'd long put up.

Finally she dried her tears, and took in a breath. Her palms came up to scrub at her face, in an attempt to remove the moisture that had gathered on her cheeks. She pulled a tissue from the untouched box next to half-dead vase of flowers and wiped her nose.

"You know what I regret most?" she said hoarsely to the silent room after several moments of just sitting there listening to her own pulse and the sound of the air conditioner, and of course there was no response to her question, but it was fine because she hadn't been expecting a response anyway.

"I regret that I never got to tell you who I really was. What I was. What you were," she said. "I regret that you never found your peace of mind, and that I only made that worse for you. I regret so many things..." she trailed off, "and while you've been sitting here wasting away I've been trying to do you justice, and wishing that I were the one dead. I've been wishing I was dead for a long time, mom. But...I recently came to the conclusion that, I can't change your condition no matter how many patrols I do,and no matter how many demons I go after it won't bring you back."

Renee inhaled and exhaled, then blinked, eyes completely empty. "I wonder if it's nice where you are," Bella went on, "I wonder if you finally found happiness and your peace of mind." Again, Renee blinked.

"So...I'm gonna set you free, Renee," Bella said, "I can't let you live on borrowed Time anymore, Time that could have a greater purpose elsewhere." she stated bluntly, mentally feeling for the energy source her father had undoubtedly set up, seeing as it had his personal signature.

There were multiple streams of energy, held there with tight magical bonds to keep Renee upright, marked with certain runes on her body that had been drawn there and then hidden. Anyone who looked into the room would have seen the mother and her daughter sitting perfectly still across from each other, while the Warlock did her work. Bella broke the bonds, but the energy didn't fade or slow, it didn't change at all except to slightly dim.

Now, she had to leave it up to time, eventually the runes would fade and the magic would break entirely.

Bella predicted that Renee may have yet another year before she died, really and truly died, seeing as she hadn't been really living for the past eight years.

Not truly.

Renee had been a vegetable all this time, a human potato just sitting there and waiting for Bella to make her peace, or at least, as much peace she could accomplish...and maybe she would come back for the funeral...if there was one.

Bella touched her finger to the vase, putting a single spark of her energy into the stems to revive the wilted blooms; she opened the blinds to let more light into the room, then she brushed her mother's hair and left.

Max was playing chess with one of the saner patients out in the waiting room, and it looked like a riveting match. Her chin rested in the crook of her forefinger and thumb, eyes scanning the board for a move that she could make.

Bella had no trouble seeing the escape route but she waited to see if Max could figure it out, "Dammit," Max swore, and stony-faced, Bella intervened and the patient gaped.

"Checkmate," Bella deadpanned, "let's go." Max stood up, shook hands with him and followed her companion outside.

"You alright?" she asked. Bella whirled on her, eyes intense and cold.

"Mention a word of this and I'll pull your guts out through your throat, got it?" Bella said and Max just nodded, her heartbeat picking up slightly.

"Signed, sealed and delivered," she replied, seeing 'Killer' written plainly in Bella's eyes, and she knew that if she told anyone what transpired today Bella wouldn't fail to do exactly as she had promised.

"Good," Bella said, "You wanna get something to eat?" the heat felt welcome on their skin after sitting inside for so long in the stagnant cold. The sun hung low in the sky, casting orange light on the world.

Phoenix was settling in for the work week ahead, though the bums still wandered and gangs walked with suspicious eyes. And Bella had gone back to feeling cold, not numb, just cold.

She'd left what little sympathy she had in that room, and now...now she wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to feel again.

She couldn't even feel anger, which had been her staple for so long.

Anger had suppressed the sadness and kept the tears at bay.

Anger had kept her from sitting on her ass and bemoaning the evils life had put her through.

Anger had kept her on her feet...and now, she was at a loss. "I'm assuming you've lived here before," Bella said.

"Yeah," Max said, "not for too long though."

"You got family here?"

"Some..." Max said, though the question had made her feel uneasy, Bella could see it in her eyes. For a minute, Bella just studied her, noting the way she carried herself, her choppy sandy-blonde hair looked like it had grown out to her shoulders like that, uneven like she'd hacked it off awhile ago with a pair of safety scissors or a pocket-knife.

Bella was silent as she swung her leg over her bike and Max climbed on behind her, earning them a few looks when they pulled up to a burger joint on the far side of town. "Come on, I'm starved. Then you can tell me why you're wearing a jacket in ninety plus degree heat."

* * *

**Nyx: I tried to make it longer, but this is all I was able to pull out without giving too much away. **

**Puff: At least my talons aren't pink anymore. Glad that's over. **

**Nyx: Bear with me y'all, their reunion is coming. It'll just take a little time to get there. Not so much the destination as it is the journey said a wise man once.**

**Puff: Would that wise man happen to be Jack Sparrow?**

**Nyx: Maybe...**


	9. Praetermitto

**Nyx: So far this summer hasn't been very entertaining. **

**Puff: My nose itches. Nyx can you scratch it?**

**Nyx: No. So I don't own-**

**Puff: I have syrup all over my talons! I don't wanna get syrup on my face!**

**Nyx: Then wash your talons. Yeah, I don't own most of this. But just think how awesome would it be to do this and get paid for it? Eh? A girl can dream can't she?**

* * *

_If I could fall_  
_Into the sky_  
_Do you think time_  
_Would pass me by_  
_'Cause you know I'd walk_  
_A thousand miles_  
_If I could _  
_Just see you_  
_Tonight_

_-A Thousand Miles, Vanessa Carlton_

* * *

Chapter 9. Praetermitto

_April_

Jasper was a little startled to see that the layout of the house had changed, but then again, this was a Warlock's house. Demosthenes was waiting at the bottom of the grand staircase, eyes solemn and expression drawn. "She's not here is she?" Jasper asked and Dem shook his head no.

"You missed her by a good fortnight," he told him. _Shit_, he silently swore. _We left too late._

"Why did she leave?"

"My guess is, she got tired of her sickbed and wanted to go somewhere else," Dem said, shrugging.

"Any guesses as to where she went?" Jasper asked.

"Knowing Bella she could have gone anywhere," Dem said, scratching the back of his neck, "East, south, west to home," he shrugged, "I didn't stand in her way and I didn't ask questions."

"Good thing too," Jasper looked up to see a woman that looked a bit like Bella, he could definitely see the resemblance in the eyes. They were just as cold, hard and scarily perceptive as hers. "Bella's a woman grown and doesn't need to be coddled," the woman said.

"Mama," Dem sighed, "we're all well aware of that. We worry for her is all."

"I don't," Dem's mother snapped, "she can take care of herself. She wants to see a shrink, that's her choice. She wants to drink herself to death or get involved with drugs, smack some sense into her and let her figure out the rest."

Jasper stood there the tiniest bit bewildered but he immediately decided that he liked this woman.

She was tough, wise and no-nonsense.

"But, I didn't come down from the lounge to discuss my AWOL granddaughter, I wanted to see who our guest is. You're being so very rude right now," Bella's grandmother said.

"Mama, this is Major Jasper Whitlock," Dem said using his full titled, "Jasper, this is my mother, Anita Swan." Anita Swan didn't descend the rest of the stairs to shake the vampire's hand, instead watched him with those cool eyes and made him feel like he was being x-rayed.

"Why are you here, Major Whitlock?" she asked him. "And looking for my granddaughter no less?"

"I..." Jasper stuttered.

"Mama, now you are being rude," Demosthenes said, though his words spoke a reprimand his tone was tired.

"Hush, _hijo_," Anita scolded, "I want to hear what the boy has to say."

"I want answers," he said finally, "I told her something a few months ago and now I want a response." it wasn't the whole truth sure, maybe it wasn't the truth at all, and Anita seemed to know this. Her and her perceptive eyes, but she didn't call him out on it.

"I wish I could tell you for sure where she went, Jasper," Dem said, scratching at his stubble, "but Bella's more than a little headstrong and silent as the damn grave my papa was buried in, but I can tell you that she is well on her feet."

"Thank you, sir," Jasper said politely, putting a cap on his irritation that festered with each moment he stood here, absolutely no closer to finding Bella.

"Call me Demosthenes," the Warlock said waving him off, "or Dem." Jasper inclined his head respectfully towards Anita on the stairs, her Spanish shawl clutched about her, and watching him with shrewd eyes before turning on his heel and making for the door.

But he was stopped when the Warlock said, "Major." and turned to see his face, obviously having come to a conclusion of some sort, "be that as it may...she might have driven for New York." Jasper didn't move.

"Why New York?" he asked.

"Business," Dem replied vaguely, a smile playing about his lips, "visiting old friends, maybe she wanted to amuse herself on a larger hunting ground...Good luck to you." Jasper nodded and left, flitting down the steps and climbing back into the driver's seat.

"What did you find?" Peter asked.

"We're going to New York," Jasper said.

"Damn...that's another days' drive at least. And New York is so populated, it's like a fucking endless ant farm," Peter complained, big cities may make for good eating, but he disliked the lack of space.

Jasper didn't give a shit, he was able to adapt but Peter was right, New York was fucking enormous. There were over one million people populating New York City by itself, and using technology to comb through databases would take at least a week, using old-fashioned tracking would take even longer.

Their best bet was using the databases, which was going to be hard enough even if Bella hadn't changed her identity upon entry into a new city. For now Jasper just drove, eventually Peter turned on the radio to break the silence while Charlotte concentrated on anything that came through her 'sixth sense'.

Jasper wasn't sure if Charlotte was going to receive any clues as to Bella's location considering that the Reapers were cloaked from outsiders and Peter and Charlotte had definitely not been clued in on the world Bella interacted with every day.

Needless to say, Jasper was one unhappy camper. To find out that he had driven all this way, nagged by Peter through most of the drive only to find out that she had evaded him as if she had known he was coming and had left to avoid confrontation. "Hey, J," Peter said.

"What?" he replied sharply.

"We gonna stop by House Cullen by any chance? You said they were in Ohio right?"

"Pennsylvania," Jasper said curtly, "and I don't think so."

"Huh," Peter said, "just wonderin'." after that, Peter didn't say much else.

They didn't stop but to get fuel, Jasper was a set bastard and he was looking forward to reaching New York. Even though it would take awhile to find her. But he still had to consider his options, and chances were that in a state as populated as New York there were bound to be demons. As a matter of fact, he had a feeling that Manhattan was crawling with them and if Bella had truly relocated here, then she wouldn't have much time on her hands.

Peter and Charlotte weren't aware of the girl's ability to teleport either, and how she could be from one end of the state to the next in minutes. _If it were easy, she wouldn't be worth it_, a voice in the back of his head told him, _and if she were easy, it wouldn't be worth it._

And he had told her that she was worth it, hadn't he? And what kind of bastard would that make him if he were to go back on his word?

Strictly speaking, for the better part of over a century his word didn't mean shit; he killed, he lied, he cheated, he fucked and he fought. There was no point to playing any game unless he came out the winner, and he was very good at winning.

The ache lessened some, as they got closer to New York, Jasper didn't think anything of it, so concentrated on finding the Reaper he barely acknowledged it. Peter had the map perched on his thigh, chewing on his thumbnail while looking it over.

"Jasper," Charlotte said softly from the backseat, breaking the days' long silence.

"Mm?"

"I'm just curious," Charlotte said, "just what are you going to say to Bella if we do find her?" Peter cocked his head, obviously having never thought of that himself. "Well ain't that a million dollar question," he muttered, scratching his cheek.

"Whatever words come out I suppose," Jasper said, "it does no good to rehearse."

"I'm just saying, what if you say the wrong thing?" Charlotte asked, "I mean, maybe she's awful sensitive."

"Bella isn't Alice, Charlotte," Jasper said.

"I'm well aware," Charlotte replied.

"Bella takes shit as it's given to her, she might not take it lying down, hell she might fling it back twice as hard," Jasper said, "I'll just...say what I feel."

"Well, you can't go wrong with that," Peter said. "Right Char?"

"I guess," Charlotte sighed, "I just don't want you to get hurt J." Jasper didn't say anything more, not that he had anything to say to that. He knew she cared about him, they both did but he couldn't respond without at least trying to explain what Bella was and how things in her world worked.

Jasper couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if he had kept his mouth shut; she would have left anyway, he decided, she'd have gone home to think and walked straight into the trap still. Thinking about her hurt, but not as much as it did before. The ache was getting increasingly faint, _Have I figured it out yet? _

_Ugh, not now. _

_Yes, now. You need to realize that she and the ache are connected. It means something. _

_And here I was thinking I was just getting old._

_I _am_ getting old. Though that's not the reason it hurts so much. _

_I need answers, not riddles. _

_Think about it..._

"I won't," he finally said.

"How do you know?" she retorted.

"Because I won't let it," he replied.

"She has the power to hurt you Jasper," Charlotte said, _If only you knew_, Jasper thought. "Maybe not physically, but emotionally." Y_ou're wrong, she's able to do both._ "What are you going to do if she walks away from you?"

"I'll deal," he replied. Charlotte scoffed and Peter said nothing, deep in thought. Charlotte crossed her arms and said no more, shaking her head minutely. Peter exchanged a glance with his wife, _Give him time,_ he said with his eyes.

_I'm worried for him,_ Charlotte's said.

_Patience_, he reminded her.

* * *

**Nyx: Patience indeed. **

**Puff: I can be patient.**

**Nyx: Puff, you're the most impatient person that I know. **

**Puff: Nu-uuuh! **

**Nyx: Review? **


	10. Portentum

**Nyx: Any of you read or watch Game of Thrones? Two syllables: In-tense. **

**Puff: The white-haired chick scares me. **

**Nyx: With that being said, I don't own anything you may recognize, if I did I'd be in the Bahamas or Spain right now, enjoying exotic foods and living it up during the summer. Happy reading!**

* * *

_But I'm a creep_  
_I'm a weirdo_  
_What the hell am I doing here?_  
_I don't belong here_

_-Creep, Radiohead_

* * *

Chapter 10. Portentum

Max had ordered three double cheeseburgers all with orders of fries, and proceeded to eat it all with enthusiasm. Bella didn't comment, having witnessed the appetite of seven teenage shifters.

The waitress gaped though when Max had asked for a large milkshake for dessert, all that was left of the burgers were ketchup and mustard stains, and the paper they'd been wrapped in. "Sorry for turning into a total hog," Max apologized, slurping on her shake. Bella waved her off.

"I've seen worse," Bella said, and she had; she almost smiled at the memory of Jacob shoving six hot dogs in his mouth at once. "Are you finished?" she asked, and Max nodded.

She slapped a couple of bills on the table, enough to tip the waitress and pay the tab, before standing and leading Max out. She attracted more than few stares, feeling their eyes boring holes into her back. "People stare at you a lot don't they?" Max asked.

"Yep," Bella replied.

"Doesn't it make you uncomfortable?" she asked.

"Sometimes," Bella nodded, "but I had to learn to live with it, get used to it. I can't be invisible all the time, I'd never get anything done."

"Wait, you can do that?" Max asked.

"Warlock," Bella pointed to herself and Max realized she'd been led onto a rooftop, having blindly followed Bella through a portal. Max cursed herself for losing touch with her training and being struck stupid by how beautiful this woman was.

"No one can see or hear us up here," Bella said, "but don't worry, I didn't bring you here to murder you." Max blinked and swallowed.

"I didn't think you were being serious," Max said.

"I rarely say anything I don't mean, Max," Bella told her, "I kinda showed you mine, and we had a deal." Max exhaled and unzipped her oversized jacket then shrugged out of it, then slowly unfolded her wings. Bella didn't say anything, her face completely unreadable, her eyes taking in all seventeen feet of pure muscle and feathers. "Well?" Max asked.

"Well what?" Bella replied.

"Is that it, all you have to say?" Max exclaimed, "I'm a mutant freak!"

"You're a Reaper," Bella corrected, "We're all different, I thought you were going to tell me you had a sun allergy."

"That's ridiculous," Max scoffed.

"It's not," Bella said, "Ever see a human with a UV allergy? Their skin blisters and bubbles, it looks like they roasted themselves in their own fireplace before going sunbathing for too long."

"Sounds gross," Max began to flap her wings, hovering for a few seconds, before gaining height then landing. "Been so long since I've flown," Max said.

"Why don't you?"

"New York is crowded," Max said, "I might be seen, and besides, this past year is the most human I've felt in a really long time."

"But you didn't ask me to bring you here because of the wide open spaces," Bella said.

Max shook her head, "I'm a recombinant DNA life-form, one of the most successful to date. About twelve years ago I escaped from the lab facility I was being held in."

"And there's more of you," Bella stated and Max swallowed.

"Yeah," Max said, "five others like me, six if you count my clone." Bella didn't say anything else, didn't ask anymore questions and didn't seek to pry her open like a seashell, but Max felt like she could trust this woman and so...

"We were family," Max said, fighting to keep the tears in, "and they kicked me out." Bella's expression wasn't soft, but it was definitely understanding. There was no pity, only empathy.

"I wasn't good enough," Max said tightly, closing her eyes so she wouldn't cry, her nails digging into the palms of her hands, "not strong enough, not leader enough..." Max felt a hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes.

"I know how that feels," Bella whispered, "I thought I had a family...and they left me behind." Bella held up her wrist, revealing a faded white scar, a bite that had long since healed and been repaired with magic. "I keep that to remind me of what they really are and to use my head next time. How I was a pet, not a sibling, no better than the unwanted cat."

then they heard a low hissing sound, and the snap of pincers, the scrabbling of multiple feet and evil laughter. Bella and Max exchanged a look, peering over the side of the building into the dark below and seeing something move within it.

Bella turned and walked into a portal, Max not far behind.

What they found was a monstrous spider; bulbous, black and hungry.

And it could _speak_.

"Freedom," it hissed in triumph, "freedom..." the voice was very obviously female, but it wasn't any less disturbing hearing words come from the mouth of a spider that was now feasting on the remains of a homeless man.

Max looked at Bella who had already donned her gear, shadow staining her clothes and blade in hand. Bella pulled Max aside, "Distract it, I'll get under it and stab it in the underbelly where there's no armor."

"Can't you just use magic?" Max asked.

"If that spider is who I think it is, then magic won't help," Bella said, her brown eyes becoming crimson. Max took the hint, and transitioned into her gear, leaving her wings free for the first time in years. She took to the air, going higher before coming to hover above the horrendous arachnid.

"Hey! Ugly!" the spider hissed at the insult, "Come and get me!" quiet as a shadow, Bella crept up behind the spider while Max continued to shout taunts and insults that got progressively nastier, making the spider angrier. Its huge black abdomen shaking back and forth, squealing with rage.

"Insolent bird-girl!" it shrieked at a particularly harsh jab, "I will pluck your feathers out one by one and devour you whole!"

"Please, even if Medusa was here you'd win the ugly contest," Max said, the arachnid screeched in fury, rearing up on her hind legs, but Max flew higher, out of the reach of her front legs, "Come here you putrid creature-bird!" the spider screamed, Bella didn't give it another chance to say anything else, gutting the spider with a swing of her longsword.

The spider hissed as it died, curling in on itself while black oozed from the ugly gash in its underbelly before eventually crumbling into black ash. Max landed next to her, shivering in revulsion, "I swear, if I see another spider again, it'll be too soon," she said.

"Come on," Bella said, "we'll check into a motel for the night."

.

.

.

"The Medusa comment was nice by the way," Bella said when they'd checked into a room for the night.

"I was just blurting shit out," Max said pulling off her shoes, "It wasn't my best insult, but it seemed to really piss off that spider."

"That was no ordinary spider," Bella said.

"You're telling me," Max snorted.

"I'm serious," Bella told her, "that was Arachne, one of the oldest monsters on this planet."

"Sounds familiar," Max muttered.

"In the Greek stories, Arachne used to be human, she let her arrogance get the best of her and she insulted the gods."

"And they turned her into a spider?"

"Mmhm," Bella said, "We'll have to get back to New York by tomorrow night."

"Why?" Bella looked at her with a solemn face.

"Because if the old monsters are being brought back, then we have much reason to be concerned," Bella said, "the oldest scariest ideas borne from the ancient imagination of men are being brought alive..."

"I get that that's a bad thing, but how bad is it?" Max asked feeling dense.

"Only the most powerful demons have the power to give life to nightmares," Bella said, "and if someone is raising one, then-"

"We're in deep shit," Max blurted, finishing the rest of Bella's sentence and she nodded.

The next morning they checked out and hauled ass to Mesa, Bella following Max's directions to her mother's house. A large two-story house on the nicer side of town, with a two-car garage and patches in the lawn where grass-stubble was growing in.

Max got off the bike but didn't move after that, just staring at the house. Bella parked the bike under the shade and went to stand next to Max who had the sleeves of her jacket pushed up to her elbows. "You alright?" she asked.

"It's just...I haven't seen my mom in a while," Max said, "I'm afraid of what will happen..." _Looks like we both got mommy issues,_ Bella thought. And in a rare moment of utter sympathy and kindness...

"Want me to come with you?" she asked, Max looked at her and exhaled shakily.

"Please," she said. Max swallowed once they reached the front door.

"If you turn chicken on me, I'll punch you," Bella threatened.

"Well, since you said it so nicely," Max drolled, before ringing the doorbell. It was a few minutes wait, before a girl answered the door, almost Bella's height, with long brown hair and a pretty face. She looked irritated before seeing Max's face, "Holy...Max?" she asked.

"In the flesh," Max said, grimacing before being put into a choking hug, "It's good to see you too Ella."

"'Good to see you'? Is that all you have to say? After all you put us through?" Ella gaped.

"Er...yeah," Max shrugged. Ella palmed her face.

"You better come in," she said. "Mom!" she yelled, "we have a visitor!"

"Do I smell cookies?" Bella asked.

"Mom's special recipe," Max nodded.

"Who is it Ella?" a woman responded, "The cookies are almost-" she stopped short on seeing her daughter, still alive and well before pulling her into a crushing hug.

"Thank God," the woman sobbed and Bella just stood awkwardly off to the side, turning her face away so they could have their moment. "Maximum Ride-Martinez!" the woman scolded, "I was worried sick! You didn't call or text, not even a letter!"

"Sorry Mom," Max smiled, "Er...this is my friend Bella. Bella, Dr. and Ella Martinez," she gestured.

"Charmed," Bella deadpanned.

"Are those cookies I smell?" said another voice near Bella's feet. Bella looked down and raised an eyebrow at the pure black Scottie dog. "Well, well, well, Maximum Ride," the dog said, waddling over to the winged Reaper.

"Holy crap Total, splurge much while I was gone?" Max said.

"Your mother is an excellent cook," the dog sniffed, "I simply took it upon myself not to let any of her delicious creations go to waste." Max rolled her eyes and picked up the dog, cuddling his pudgy body and scratching him behind the ears. "Alright, I forgive you," Total said.

"Total, we have a guest," Ella coughed.

"Oops," Total muttered.

"It's fine, I've seen stranger things," Bella waved them off.

"I doubt that," Ella muttered.

"Try me," Bella said, eyes flashing. Max put the fat canine down and looked around.

"What's with all the boxes?" she asked.

"We're moving to Glendale next week," Dr. Martinez smiled, "I got a job offer up there at a really nice animal hospital."

"Yeah between the furniture and everyone else's junk, we'll barely be ready to go," Ella snarked and Dr. Martinez shot a look at her youngest daughter.

"Everyone else?" Max asked, eyes narrowing. Ella looked uncomfortable now and Bella raised an eyebrow. "You didn't...move the Flock in here, did you?"

"Max-" Dr. Martinez started.

"Stop," Max said, "let me think." she looked at Bella who was a pillar of objective calm amidst the mess. _What do I do?_ Max pleaded silently.

_Whatever you want_, Bella replied. Max's eyes took on a note of steel and she looked at her mother, "I'll make nice...for you. But don't expect me to visit again any time soon."

"Max, that's not fair!" Ella protested, "you just up and left for Lord knows how long or why without an explanation-"

"And you know very well why," Max growled, "and I refuse to be subjected to anything like that again." the door opened suddenly and a very tall and very blonde boy walked in.

"Honey I'm home!" he announced carrying several grocery bags, "How come the blind guy got roped into carrying the groceries, huh?" he asked.

"Iggy, we have a visitor," Ella said.

"Well, it's nice to see you too babe," he said craning his head for a kiss and Ella rolled her eyes before giving him one.

"Val," a little blonde girl complained once she came into the house, "Gazzy kept stealing all the cookies!"

"Liar!" proclaimed another boy, also holding several bags of groceries. None of them seemed to notice Max's presence, arguing over the goodies, that is until a tall dark-haired boy walked in and noticed her immediately. "Max," he whispered, but the house fell silent on his word.

All Bella could say was, "What the fuck?" Max looked at her.

"I know right?" she asked. The boy looked almost exactly like Azazel.

* * *

**Nyx: For those of you who have read the series of which is thrown into the mix here, you get a preview of ze next chapter :)**

**Puff: Laaaaaaa la-la-laaaa!**

**Nyx: Just saw Man of Steel by the way, it was good. Visually stimulating. **

**Puff: All movies are visually stimulating otherwise they'd just be...sounds. **

**Nyx: Review?**


	11. Suppleo

**Nyx: My week hasn't been all that interesting. Needless to say, I've had to put up with more whining than what should be legal. **

**Puff: If you mean more than zero, I definitely agree with you.**

**Nyx: You whine as much as any other five-year-old. **

**Puff: *pouts* I do not! **

**Nyx: You don't wanna hear what I have to say to that. So, without further ado, I don't own anything you may recognize, S. Meyer owns her characters and I own mine. If I could get paid for doing this shit, I wouldn't have to worry about paying for college! **

* * *

_How sad you're gonna be  
I wish I could stick around  
to see your face when you realize you've permanently changed  
and it's all thanks to me  
I was wrong for coming here  
You'll wake alone and run around your lonely home  
Look for my face but I'm already gone_

_-Already Gone, Bayside_

* * *

Chapter 11. Suppleo

Bella could see that this so-called 'family' had just as much issues as hers. And the Azazel doppelganger, could have passed for him if it hadn't been for his slighter frame and ink-free skin. What Max called 'The Flock' was nothing but a rag-tag band of kids, being led by the black-haired look-a-like who was looking at their estranged member like she'd risen from the dead.

Bella stood in the corner, as a bystander, nibbling on a cookie and flipping a dagger expertly between her fingers. She watched the proceedings with small amount of enjoyment. Max was doing her best to play nice with the people who'd disregarded her, and having been dissed by a bunch of kids? That must have stung and Bella was no stranger to abandonment and being treated like shit.

From what Bella could gather, mini-Azazel and Max had had a romance and it didn't end so well. The way Max kept her face completely blank and flexed her jaw from time to time, Bella could tell her fellow Reaper was having a hard time keeping her temper in check, especially when it came to the little blonde girl who kept giving Bella peculiar looks. Bella raised an eyebrow at the little eleven year old, who blinked before averting her eyes.

Nobody looked Max in the eye, and it got painstakingly worse when Dr. Martinez attempted to lighten the atmosphere. "I'll get lunch started," she said brightly, an awkward smile on her face. Bella could see why Max had not been so keen on coming in alone, this was like pulling teeth. And it got worse when lunch time came around and everyone sat down to the table to eat.

Max picked at her food, obviously not the norm for her since Bella had seen her devour three double cheeseburgers in less than an hour and still have room for dessert. The eleven year old wouldn't stop staring at Max, giving her the same peculiar look she'd given Bella but with a touch of concern. "I can't hear you Max," she finally said. Bella didn't say anything, "I can't hear her either," Angel announced with a pointed look at the Warlock.

"Good," Max said, "maybe then you'll learn to think for yourself." Angel looked unimpressed.

"Max," Dr. Martinez said.

"Don't start," Max warned, her eyes briefly flashing red. Bella knew that flash, and it meant that the girl was hanging by a thread. Her temper on the edge of a knife.

"I can think for myself," Angel defended petulantly.

"That's nice," Max said offhandedly, "And Iggy, you're dating my little sister now."

"Uh, yeah," Iggy squirmed.

"If you break her heart I'll break every bone in your body," she threatened sweetly.

"Iggy's good to me, Max," Ella defended her boyfriend.

"That's nice to hear," Max said, "if I had heard otherwise we'd be having a very different conversation right now." Iggy remained silent, pale blue eyes wandering sightlessly for a way out of the turn the conversation had taken. Fang, Azazel's lookalike, sat silent at the table, eating his food like there was nothing out of the ordinary at all.

Bella decided that these kids were likeable, save for the fact that they'd hurt one of her own, and Reapers stuck together. It was for that reason she could not allow herself to take a liking to them, especially with the way they were handling the situation. The atmosphere was tense and thick, none of them would look their former-leader and surrogate mother-figure full in the face and Max had decided that she'd had enough. "Can we go?" she asked quietly. Bella nodded and stood, while the Flock looked up and watched them depart without a word, eyes wide and faces anxious. "Max, where are you going?" Dr. Martinez asked.

"I'm going home," Max said, "I know when I'm not welcome."

"Max, you are home," her mother insisted, "you have family here."

"All I see is a table full of traitors, and the woman who harbored them," Max said calmly. "We have to get back anyway." the door slammed shut behind them, and it was a silent walk down the driveway to where Bella's bike sat parked in the shade. "What was your mom like?" Max asked and Bella went rigid, but she had to admire the gall and after a moment's silence she found her tongue again.

"Beautiful," Bella said tightly, "and protective."

"Mine was supposed to love me," Max muttered, "but...I guess I'm not good enough for that either..." Bella had nothing to say to that. What could she say?

"Max!" it was the first time hearing Fang speak and Max had a knife at his throat within seconds, her training kicking in with such ferocity, Bella could read the tension in her body like a book, seeing that Max was desperately holding back. She wanted to kill this boy, slit his throat and cut him to ribbons...and Bella had to admire her restraint.

"If you don't want to see your innards all over the pavement I suggest you get back inside," Max said darkly.

"Will you just listen-?," he started. Max delivered a powerful kick to his stomach sending him flying across the yard and onto the neighbor's lawn. Bella climbed onto the bike, the engine starting up with a quiet purr. "I thought I made it quite clear that what you say doesn't matter. Not anymore. It ceased to matter the day you stopped being there for me. Why? Why did you stop being there for me?" Bella had to give the girl credit for holding it together like that, most girls in her situation would have burst into tears by now. But Max had gone through too much shit to cry, not in front of her old flame. "I stayed behind to make sure Angel didn't so something stupid," Fang said, when he got his breath back, blood staining his teeth.

"Bullshit!" Max spat before turning her back, "I've had enough."

.

.

.

_May_

Fifteen days they'd been in New York, fifteen days and there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. "Patience, Jasper," Peter reminded him. Jasper continued to pace, "Jeez, would ya relax? You're startin' to make me all jittery."

"I want to find her Peter," Jasper emphasized, the ache wasn't as sharp now, but it was still there and from time to time there'd be an imperceptible tug. But his thoughts were elsewhere, so focused on finding Bella and getting answers. Getting what he really wanted.

They'd holed up in Rochester, while Peter set up his laptop and got his shit together, and taking his sweet ass time while doing it. Jasper fed regularly now, coming back into his full strength and he could feel the dark presence in his consciousness just waiting there and supplying him with sarcastic wisdom whenever it felt the need, asking him if he'd 'figured it out yet'.

Of course, Jasper never got the joke, if it was all indeed a joke. Dammit he needed a laugh...and a drink, most importantly he needed her. "There are thousands upon thousands of Isabelle's, Isabella's and whatnot in New York _City_, J, let alone the fucking state," Peter finally informed him after Charlotte came back from running a perimeter, and still the bastard had waited just to make Jasper that much more agitated. "It'll take more than two weeks to find her," Peter said.

Jasper tugged on his hair, "I don't care anymore Peter, just find her. Her last names' Swan." Peter typed.

"That narrows it down a bit...but not by much. Swan ain't exactly a unique name," he said.

"I just want her found." Peter didn't say anything, keeping his peace while he initiated the scan having noticed on more than one occasion, Jasper's hand drifting to his chest, right over his heart...the action seemed subconscious, like he didn't realize he was doing it and Peter began to suspect...he stood up abruptly, causing Jasper to let a small growl slip at his sudden movements.

Peter ignored him made a B-line for his wife who was researching in the other room. She was propped up in bed, a laptop perched on top of her thighs and her face aglow by the light of the computer screen. "I've started the scan," he told her. Charlotte was quiet for a few more minutes, before a little frown appeared on her face, "I think I've found somethin'," she said. "J, girl's name is Isabella Swan right?"

"Yes," Jasper said.

"About five six, brunette, brown eyes?" Charlotte asked.

"Yes," Jasper repeated, "but that could be anyone."

"Found a little blurb on a news website, says one Miss Isabella Swan about seventeen years of age was found on the side of a New Mexico highway, police reported she was half-dead, unconscious and riddled with obvious signs of abuse. They concluded she'd been abandoned there," Charlotte summarized. Jasper didn't make a sound from the other room, walking in silently a pensive look on his face. "What was the date?" he asked.

"November..." Charlotte had said, and Jasper zoned as soon as he heard the year. November...just five months before she moved to Forks, before she got in with the Cullens. Anger boiled in his gut at the thought of anyone harming her, and then leaving her to die on the side of the road like garbage. Peter stood there in shock, concerned eyes planted firmly on his brother who started to shake with a barely contained rage.

The old scars he'd seen splashed across her hip probably hadn't all come from demon fighting and he wanted to cry, scream and rip the culprit apart. Instead he turned on his heel and stormed out of the house, leaving Peter and Charlotte sitting there, frozen. Peter released a pent up breath, and sat on the bed near his mate's feet, "Char..." was all he said. She put the laptop aside with a sigh, brushing her blonde hair out of her eyes.

"He certainly took that...strongly," was all she said.

"I think she's his mate," Peter said, shocking the hell out of his wife. It had only happened twice before when Peter figured shit out before his wife did. But this time...this time it was something big, and more than likely, something that Peter would rib his wife about when all this shit was over and done with. Charlotte drew in a shaky breath, the pieces silently coming together. "Peter...I don't know," she finally said, the holes in his theory too big to overlook, "she wouldn't have been able to walk away from him if they were. Especially since they had sex."

"You don't know if he marked her," Peter said.

"No, I don't," Charlotte said, shaking her head.

"He loves her Char," Peter added softly, "even a deaf, dumb and blind man could see that." Char rubbed at her forehead, "I know," she said, "doesn't mean I like it, though."

"Nobody said you had to," Peter said.

"She's hurt him, Peter," Charlotte said, "and I want to hurt her for it."

"If she's the girl in that article, Char, then she's just as damaged as he is," Peter said, once again playing the voice of reason, "we don't know what she really went through, we don't even know exactly who she is."

"If I find out and I don't like her I'm kickin' her ass," Charlotte finally said. "And you can't say shit about it."

"If I feel the same way, I probably won't stop ya," Peter chuckled. Charlotte laid her head on his chest, and he wrapped her in his embrace.

"Peter...if you're right," Charlotte finally whispered, "we can't tell him." Peter rested his head on the top of her head, and closed his eyes, sadness blooming in his chest.

"I know."

* * *

**Nyx: You people don't talk enough, come on speak up, ya gotta tell me what you think? Reviews rock my socks!**

**Puff: All I be hearin' is crickets.**

**Nyx: You watch too many Shane Dawson videos. **

**Puff: Is it weird that he's hotter when he dresses in drag?**

**Nyx: The fact that you think so? Definitely yes. **


	12. Pugna

**Nyx: Yeah, this update is a day late, but yesterday was a holiday and it's not my fault my grandma is selfish with her wifi. I swear, I love the woman but sometimes I really don't like her. **

**Puff: I like your grandma. **

**Nyx: Only because she gives you homemade cinnamon rolls. **

**Puff: I'd marry the woman for those rolls. **

**Nyx: Ew...don't remind me. So, again, I apologize for the late update and if I owned _Twilight_ I wouldn't be stuck with a crappy minimum wage job. **

* * *

_You better run like the devil,_  
_'Cause they're never gonna leave you alone!_  
_You better hide up in the alley,_  
_'Cause they're never gonna find you a home!_  
_And as the blood runs down the walls,_  
_You see me creepin' up these halls._  
_I've been a bad motherfucker_  
_Tell your sister I'm another_

_-House of Wolves, My Chemical Romance_

* * *

Chapter 12. Pugna

It was a hot night, incredibly warm despite the proximity to the ocean. Not only that, it was humid and humidity meant the scent of human blood was incredibly heady and thick, drawing out hordes of Forsaken that had gathered around a gang fight gone bad like a swarm of bees.

Bella strung her bow, as did the rest of the unit gathered on the rooftops overlooking the ugly situation. Max's lip was curled in disgust as she aimed for the one on top of the youngest boy. Without a word, they released their arrows, making the dreadful creatures cry out in pain and anger with their meal being interrupted. Within moments, six Reapers were on them, weapons out and eyes blazing red.

"There's too many of them," Liam muttered next to her.

"We'll manage," Bella replied darkly, swinging her longsword with expert finesse, promptly beheading an oncoming Forsaken in a splurt of black congealed blood. Before the body could hit the ground, the swarm charged, all of them shrieking their outrage, their meals abandoned.

Bella was taking on two, both of them had sharp yellowing teeth and swung at her with clumsy but strong arms. Forsaken were often compared to zombies and since the second outbreak of the Black Plague, had since been inspiration for the undead. Her weapon changed effortlessly from a longsword to a scythe slicing one in half, and from scythe to broadsword when she beheaded and gutted the other, gray dead organs spilled out onto the black and dirty concrete and were quickly beginning to decay.

Her broadsword became a small axe as she whipped around and launched the weapon into the back of one that was starting to overpower Liam. Three rushed her head on, snarling and gnashing their terrible teeth, "Bella!" she heard and turned to see who'd called her name, Liam had yanked her weapon out of the back of the fallen monster and threw it back to her.

She caught it and buried it into the neck of one of the oncoming monsters in one smooth turn, but not completely beheading the creature. Cold black spray hit her face, dripping into one of her eyes and impairing her vision somewhat, but she dodged and swung with her blade, cutting the arm off one in a single blow and beheading in another.

She kicked away the one she hadn't managed to entirely behead sending it sprawling. The Forsaken that was without an arm was incensed by the loss of limb and made to tackle her and she quickly held out her sword, impaling the body and feeling the spurt of more blood onto her pale hands.

Hearing a gasp and the wet sound of a sword passing through flesh she turned to see that Azazel had taken down the last one, his sword had finished the beheading she'd part-way done and the Forsaken lay in various pieces around them, all of them beginning to decay. "Never thought I'd get the pleasure of killing live zombies," Max half-laughed, scrubbing at her cheek with the back of her hand.

"Forsaken aren't zombies," Bella said, "they're the inspiration for them though."

"If they're not zombies, then what are they?" Liam spoke up this time, frowning at an already half-decayed body. The abdomen had opened up to reveal a nest of maggots in the stomach and his face was screwed up in disgust.

"Think of it this way," Daniil said, kicking a head out of his path, "a vampire initiates the transition in a human but half-way through the transition goes wrong and instead of a healthy fledgling you get a mindless creature that does what its told."

"It's more complicated than that," Carrie added, "but that's the general idea." both Liam and Max nodded in understanding, getting the gist.

"The lesson to be learned here is to do your homework," Bella said, "the Archives exist for a reason."

"Lets get this shit cleaned up," Azazel said, "we have four hours 'til dawn and a whole lotta bodies to dispose of." The Forsaken were easy to deal with, piling them up into a dumpster, covering them with lighter fluid and setting the cadavers ablaze. They were ash within ten minutes, but the bodies of the gang members were beyond help and the mess would be discovered very soon.

The Reapers looked at the bodies, all of them sprawled across the alley, blood and flesh spattering the dark walls and most of them young. Too young to be caught up in this kind of life. With a sigh of resignation, Azazel pulled a nine millimeter from within his black trench coat and fired it multiple times at a trash can at the opposite end of the alley.

Bullets ricocheted off the tin and Bella used illusive magic to let the gunshots echo and Carrie did the same but to provide sounds of the dying, screams and the like. Within moments the echo of police sirens in the distance triggered them all to melt into the night with shadows and the blood of the undead staining their persons.

They convened at Daniil's house in the suburbs, all of them gathered around with unhappy faces. "This is getting out of hand," Azazel muttered, "this is the second attack this week, and this one was larger than last."

"And what do you propose we do, Z?" Carrie asked, hands on her little hips, "We don't know where they're coming from."

"Then we weed out the creator," Daniil said, "find the nest."

"Have any of you checked out the local churches?" Bella said, "I'm only just now finding out about these attacks, considering I got back into town this morning."

"What good would looking at churches do?" Liam asked, scraping away at some blood that had dried on his neck.

"Churches, boy," she said, "can be inverted. Built on unconsecrated ground and remain unsanctioned. We found one in Seattle, holding a massive amount of Forsaken."

"And you think the same could happen here?" Carrie asked frowning.

"I know so," Bella said, "the only difference would be the ley lines. The church we found was built on one of the seven convergence points, here in New York there aren't any."

Azazel's spine had gone rigid, severe warning bells going up and he met Bella's eyes, conveying that he _knew_. The house itself seemed to hold its breath at the news, "What do we do then?" Liam asked quietly.

"We wait," Bella said definitively after several moments' pause.

.

.

.

"Interesting night I presume?" Nimueh said, her pale silver eyes were knowing and her snow white hair had been pulled away from her face. She had a rugged china doll look about her, if there was such a thing, her face beautiful and delicate, but with a subtlety that had 'troublemaker' written all over it. "Very," Bella said. "I'm gonna go shower."

"Yes, please do," her housemate replied, turning back to the television, "you look like you just committed a brutal mass homicide." she rolled her eyes and went upstairs to her room, glancing at herself in the mirror and seeing that the psychic was right. There was black gore splattered across her face and down across her torso, there was blood underneath her fingernails and her sword hand was covered in it.

She sighed and picked at the dried fluid before stripping and climbing into the shower, not bothering to let the water warm first. The water at her feet slowly turned from dark gray to clear, as she washed the evidence of tonight's excursion away. For a moment she stood under the spray contemplating her next move.

She would have to go back to Seattle soon...back to Jasper. And what would she say when she saw him again? _Hi, sorry I got kidnapped right after your huge confession, but I'm back now! Have you solved your family issues yet?_ She snorted, turning off the water and reaching for a towel to wrap around her torso, absentmindedly beginning to go about her routine all the while thinking about all she might say or do when she saw his face again.

_It'd be better if I didn't_, she told herself, _he doesn't know how to survive in this world. Not yet._

She could have taught him how, if she'd been given the time, but now with a huge clusterfuck undoubtedly headed straight for them she wanted to keep him out of harms way. Her breath stopped in the middle of brushing out her long still-damp hair, realizing that she genuinely cared for him. Not as much as he did her, but she did care.

She wasn't entirely heartless as others were led to believe, though it would have been much easier to deal if she had been. She silently swore as she realized that Nimueh had been right, and setting Renee free had opened up so many doors for her, among them being the one to truly healing.

She pulled the brush roughly through her hair, barely feeling the sting of her scalp and setting her jaw in an attempt to focus on the task, continuing to brush her hair almost abusively, as if she were punishing herself for having feelings after so long of trying to be numb. Unconsciously she wiped away at a tear that had slipped down her cheek, thankful that no more had followed.

She had shed enough tears this week.

Setting the brush down, she finished drying herself before putting on the clothes she wore to bed, loose cotton drawstring trousers and a t-shirt three sizes too big. She sighed and traipsed downstairs to the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea, passing Nimueh who was on the couch, thoroughly engrossed in a book. Bella heard a knock on the door as she reached for the kettle, and then the door opening.

She was preoccupied with filling up the kettle with water so much so that Nimueh had let out an odd noise in the next room and Bella didn't notice. The water was boiling in no more than two minutes, the pot emitting a low gentle whistle. She took up the hot mug, blowing gently on the steaming water and walking right past Azazel and Nimueh who were engaged in a serious conversation, he was no doubt describing the night's events based on Azazel using his hands to illustrate several points.

She stopped for a brief moment to raise an eyebrow at the scene, before she pursed her lips in disappointment, having hoped that Azazel had finally stopped beating around the proverbial bush. She wished for happiness for them both, she really did, both of them having been through about as much crap as her in their lives, and the two of them being among the people closest to her...it went without saying that Bella didn't take slights against those she cared for easily.

And knowing now how much she cared for Jasper, it would make leaving him behind even more painful. The way she saw it, she didn't have much of a choice. He was innocent in the ways of this crueler world, sure he had been exposed to the darker side of his species and had bathed in it, but he truly had no idea that there were much worse things than hordes of newborns and a century of ongoing war.

And if she couldn't bring herself to educate him, teach him how to survive then he was going to have to stay out of it. He'd been through too much shit already, and to put him through more would take it's toll. She'd heard of vampires going mad with age, of those whose minds had crumbled with the onslaught of memories and experiences, unable to cope with so much change. She just had to decide what to do next, what would happen if she did survive and all she loved came out of this unscathed.

* * *

**Nyx: A little bit heavy. I would have added more but I like keeping you all in suspense. **

**Puff: I still have frosting on my face! **

**Nyx: So...review? **


	13. Promitto

**Nyx: 'Tis finally Thursday! I don't have any clue why it feels longer than a week in-between updates. **

**Puff: Maybe it's because you're crazy.**

**Nyx: I know that I'm crazy, don't need anyone else to tell me. So, don't own anything you may recognize, blah blah blah.**

* * *

_When I see your smile  
Tears roll down my face I can't replace  
And now that I'm strong I have figured out  
How this world turns cold and it breaks through my soul  
And I know I'll find deep inside me I can be the one_

_I will never let you fall (let you fall)_  
_I'll stand up with you forever_  
_I'll be there for you through it all (through it all)_  
_Even if saving you sends me to heaven_

_-Your Guardian Angel, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus_

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Chapter 13. Promitto

He could barely see past the red that was taking over his vision, black spots dancing across his eyes but he refused to give over to the darker part of him that fought him for the reins. Whole trees toppled under his fury, twenty-foot sycamores snapped in half with the weight of his rage. _HOW DARE SOMEONE TOUCH WHAT IS MINE!_

Venting this way wasn't helping, only scaring off the wildlife and alerting the very distant neighbors that something was up.

So he ran, he ran far, he ran fast and he ran hard. He was barely a blur to bypassers, a breeze to most, his feet carrying him away from everything.

Away from Peter, away from Charlotte and away from his anger. The further he got, the further his anger faded, gradually disappearing into a tired resignation and by the time he had run himself ragged...he'd reached New York City. The scents of the city assaulted him, humans and pollution, amongst other things. The mix wasn't a good one and he had to school his features before he screwed his face up in disgust.

He reached into his pocket for his phone, and releasing a huff of frustration when he found that it was completely dead and a delicate crack ran across the screen. He needed to call Peter and Char, so that they knew where he was and that he was alive and he was safe. So his first order of business was swiping the wallet of a faceless passerby, heading to the nearest phone booth and inserting a few quarters before dialing.

The phone rang and rang and rang... "Jasper is that you?" Charlotte had answered.

"Yes," he said, "I'm in the city-"

"I'm so so sorry Jasper," Charlotte apologized, "I didn't know-"

"It's fine," he said flippantly, "listen, Char, where's Peter?"

"Doin' damage control, you did a fine job on the natural landscapin', sugar," she said directing a hit of her irritation at him.

"Sorry about that," he said robotically, "but when Peter gets back tell him I'm in the city."

"NYC?" Char asked.

"The very same," Jasper replied, "I'll check into a hotel-"

"We'll be there by sunrise," Char said, "hunt and get your head together. We'll see you soon. Meet us at the Waldorf." and the line cut off. He got some quarters back before pocketing the wallet he'd stolen and decided to take Charlotte's advice and hunt, seeing he'd arrived at the perfect time when the businessmen were going home and the party animals were coming out.

He kept his head ducked slightly, his posture hunched like he was attempting to hide from the world and giving off vibes that had the crowd giving him a little space, no matter how unconsciously they were doing it. Dark was descending and everybody scampered home before the monsters, both human and supernatural went on the prowl.

He melted out of the press of human bodies and onto a more peaceful street, this one a little more rough around the edges as he headed towards downtown. He suddenly staggered, placing a hand on a telephone pole to help him stay upright spots dancing across his vision as the ache suddenly skyrocketed into a throbbing pain, feeling insane pressure on his chest.

Was this what humans felt when they had a heart attack? "Hey man you okay?" asked a concerned passersby, a teenager by the looks of him, his pants too baggy and his shirt too big for his slight frame, wearing an oversized hoodie on top of it all.

"Fine," Jasper said, with a grimace, "heart palpitations, happens all the time."

"If you need me to call an ambulance," the kid started, obviously very concerned but Jasper hit him with compliance and resignation.

"I said I'm fine, on your way," he said letting a little annoyance leak into his tone. The kid nodded and swaggered away, muttering about crazy white folks. Jasper schooled his expression before walking across the street into the dark space between two buildings and taking a seat in the shadows, a hand on his chest his breathing shallow.

It felt like days rather than hours when the sun finally sank completely behind the horizon and allowed the moon to have his turn in the skies, and Jasper finally stirred from his hiding spot. The pain hadn't dulled and he knew feeding wouldn't help but he was back to feeling weary and old. He headed deeper into the downtown area, further west where the dregs of society would be.

And the further west he went, the more dilapidated the area got. The houses and tenement areas practically stacked on top of one another, the poor put too close together like sardines in a can. He thought he'd heard a rattling growl down one of the shadier alleyways, and scanned behind him but the noise had gone and he continued his hunt.

He was approached by a prostitute further downtown, her clothes couldn't even be called clothes, more like strips of cheaply sequined cloth pushing her breasts up and out and emphasizing her long legs. When she talked he could smell the nicotine in her breath, age old cigarettes not to mention the other things tainting her blood. The sores around her mouth and on her face indicated an addiction to an illegal drug, and Jasper knew he had his dinner, as dirty as she was.

With a charming smile and a seductive word or two, he had lured her away with the promise of enough money to fuel her addiction. He wove a wild web into her emotional cocktail; lust, acceptance, resignation and euphoria. Nothing but a happy sigh came of her when he sunk his teeth into her carotid artery, her eyes glazed over and with a final gasp she went limp in his arms, completely dead. Jasper disposed of the body after making it look like she'd been slashed across the neck multiple times to cover up his teeth marks.

He wandered back to the east side of town, before heading towards Manhattan making it to the lobby of one of the fanciest hotels on the island when the sun was peeking over the horizon. Charlotte was waiting for him in the deserted lobby, the receptionist sound asleep at the desk. Her eyes were concerned as she looked him over, wrinkling her nose a little bit at the way he smelled.

They were staying in a suite on the third highest floor of the hotel, and Peter paused in his work to greet his brother stopping short of embracing him and wrinkling his nose. "Good God Jasper, what's that awful smell? I thought Char told you to hunt not go roll around in garbage and pigeon shit."

"Upper west side New York," he replied, "the girl I fed on wasn't exactly clean." they said no more after that letting him bathe himself thoroughly and he stepped out of the bathroom, feeling somewhat better. But then the ache in his chest flared and he grimaced. "You alright J?" Charlotte asked, her eyebrows scrunched.

"You don't look so good," Peter added.

"There's this ache," Jasper muttered, "it's killing me."

"What kind of ache?" Charlotte asked, coming to a stand.

"It got better on the drive here, then got worse a few hours ago," Jasper said. Peter and Charlotte exchanged a look, Peter shrugged and Charlotte looked thoughtful, wondering if maybe her mate was right. If Peter _was_ right, then Jasper was..._Oh shit_, Charlotte thought. She and her husband acted oblivious though, for Jasper's sake, putting up a front until he figured it out himself or at least got the damn hint.

Jasper stood, clenching his jaw before retreating into the darkness of one of the bedrooms. He lay stretched out on top of the comforter, imagining for just a second that she was laying there beside him, pretending for just a second that it was almost Christmastime again, and they were at her uncle's house the night of the gala after they had made love. His chest tightened but he was also painfully hard, and really really sad.

Unbidden, the look on her face after he'd said those words, popped up in his head...that look of utter disbelief and melancholy, like she couldn't believe that anyone could love her but the sadness...he didn't understand that. He took to wandering the city at night, and all day when the summer monsoon hit. On the third day in the Big Apple, the ache began to fade.

He was walking along Broadway, when the ache lessened; it still remained, throbbing against his breastbone but it wasn't as bad as it had been and he'd gone back to the hotel in a better mood. Peter and Char were a little concerned for him but let him have his space, knowing he was trying to come to terms with the pull even if he didn't know exactly what it was he was feeling.

And on the fourth day, he caught a scent. It was on the cusp of his memory and smelling it brought to mind a wise woman in a black mask, with a solemn face and skin as pale as milk with hair to match. _If I were you I'd get my feelings sorted and have them asserted before you fuck everything up. _The rain had made the scent faint, but he followed it nonetheless hoping it would lead him to someone who could tell him where Bella was.

There were a couple of times where the trail went cold and he'd had to retrace his steps over and over again to find the scent. He finally hit a dead end, standing in an unfriendly neighborhood and wanting to punch himself in the face. It was sprinkling now, but with the look of the menacing clouds that were about to roll in they were in for a downpour.

He was distracted from his thoughts on the weather from a sound to his right, a wet screeching snarl that was quickly cut off in yet another horribly wet sound, the familiar song that was a blade cutting through monster flesh reached his ears and he gravitated towards the sound. His footsteps silent on the wet pavement. Two Reapers, both of them human kicked aside their rapidly decaying kill. "Fuck, they're getting everywhere," the female swore.

"At least it's not as bad as last night," the male said, "but these things are starting to get on my nerves."

"Come on, we still got a whole other sector to patrol," the female said.

"You take north, I take south?"

"Daniil and Nona are covering north and south, you'll take east and I'll take west," the female negated.

"But...but..." the male spluttered, "you know how horny those housewives are on the upper east side? I almost got _raped_ last week!"

"Did you enjoy it?"

"No!" the boy said vehemently and it was obvious he meant it, "she was at least forty years old, saggy in all the wrong places and...no, just no."

"Fine," the female sighed, "I'll take the east then." the Reapers parted ways and Jasper was torn as to which one he should follow. As he started to follow the male west, the wind blew the right way and he caught the scent again, following the trail south-southeast, along the cusp of downtown and a little towards the outer edge of the city. More towards the suburbs.

The misting rain didn't inhibit the scent this time, leading him straight to a dark blue brownstone, breaking the monotony of brownish-gray. Along the way, he'd caught Bella's scent as well, inciting a tingling burn from his nasal passages all the way down to his stomach, where excitement and anticipation began to flutter in his stomach.

And now he lingered at the bottom of the steps, feeling a bit nervous now like a school boy who just summoned the dregs of his courage to talk to his crush. He ascended the steps and raised his fist to knock on the door but before he could, the door opened and a familiar face peeked out. Her face was the same, pale as milk framed by equally pale hair but with more of a silvery touch, streaked through with the odd strip of black, the subtle message of 'troublemaker' bled through her less crisp appearance.

"You," he blurted, though he'd already attached a face to the scent.

"Me," she replied with a smirk, giving him a glimpse of a pierced tongue to match the ring in her lip and the bar in her eyebrow. She pushed the door open, revealing a dark haired man with suspicious violet eyes sitting on the couch watching television. The pale girl stood aside and called up the stairs, "Yoohoo! We've got company!" she sang.

Jasper could hear her heartbeat, the whisper of her graceful footsteps against the floor, getting louder as she descended. She didn't look like she'd been hanging out in her room all afternoon, she was dressed for an afternoon of errands or something in jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie a couple sizes too big.

"I'm only coming down to say hi and that's..." she saw Jasper and stopped, one hand on the banister, her face placid as she took him in standing there. She swallowed, not saying a single word before breezing past him out the door, a quick glance telling him to follow without argument. With a glance back at Bella's associate, who was wearing a slight smirk to accompany the knowing look in her eyes, he followed Bella out into the rain.

She led him up the street and around the block and finally into a portal, the other end depositing them in a heavily wooded area and yet he could still smell the city. "Central Park," she answered his unasked question, "at least, one of the more solitary areas. How did you find me?" he would have gotten whiplash at the abrupt change in subject.

"Since we're on the subject," he turned to look at her, "do you have any idea how hard it is to track you down? I nearly gave myself a coronary!" a look from her told him he better give her her answers, "Your dad came to see me after I realized that you went missing, and told me that you'd been found. By the time I got to Chicago, you were long gone, and your uncle said that you might have headed here," he said. "I've been driving myself crazy over the past five months, not knowing whether or not you'd left, if you were alive or if you were coming back..." he ranted. "Why didn't you come back?"

"I had other things going on," was all she said. And Jasper scoffed, irritation settling in.

"I think I deserve something better than that," he said, "your disappearance when I did what I did...dammit Bella, I just want to know why."

"Jasper...there are things that are bigger than me, than both of us. I'm sorry that's just the flat out truth, and one day I hope that, you know we can talk more about it-" she said all of this with little compassion, her voice lacking emotion and her eyes were cold like they were when they first re-met.

"Uh, no," he said with a dark laugh, "We're going to talk about this now." then there was a fire in her eyes, the fire he'd fallen in love with and the stubborn set to her jaw and the irritated slight scrunch of her nose said it all. "Alright fine," she said tightly, "I didn't come back because I needed more time, I needed space-"

"Both of which you had plenty of," he interrupted but she cut him off with a wave of her hand and his mouth involuntarily snapped shut. "Let me finish," she said harshly, "I didn't ask for any of this to happen. And all those months alone in a cell with nothing but the last words you'd said to me before I got snatched...between that and the torture, I needed to come to better terms." she shook her head, as if trying to clear it of the memories and Jasper felt that anger again, directed at her captors who'd dare lay a harmful hand on her.

He decided he couldn't argue with that, understanding what it felt like to be in a prison. "And with a potentially dangerous situation escalating in Seattle...I was running out of time. Suddenly I had so little time on my hands, so little time to research and get my shit together. And I tried, but I couldn't find the time to face you. So there you have it," she said reaching the end of her explanation.

"Then I'll wait," he said after several moments of just standing in the rain. Her lips parted in confusion, the little crease between her eyebrows making its appearance.

"What?"

"I'll wait for you," he said, "if I have to." the disbelief was there again, in her eyes...he could see it.

"Jasper-" she started.

"I've never felt this way about anyone before," he blurted, "you have to understand that, but hell, even I don't understand it." he laughed, half hysterical half desperate. And she stared at him, her face almost indecipherable. "I feel like I've been waiting forever for this..." the ache in his chest, though acutely faded at the proximity to her was still there. The only cure her soothing touch which hadn't been delivered, "but I can wait a little longer, 'cause I know that it'll be worth it, in the end." he'd gotten little less than a foot away from her by the time he'd finished his spiel, and she looked so utterly melancholy that he felt his heart would break looking at her like that.

He reached for her and she blinked, releasing a few of the tears he hadn't realized she'd been holding back. Hidden somewhat by the rain that was starting to come down harder, soaking them both. "Please stop," she murmured, a few more tears chasing the ones that had already fallen.

"What am I doing?" he asked.

"Being wonderful," she whispered.

"Why?" he asked.

"'Cause I might love you," she replied.

"Is that such a bad thing?" he asked.

"Everything I love breaks," she said, voice trembling with the tears she was barely holding back. He rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes at the relief and contentment that spread through his chest. "I won't," he murmured, "I promise."

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**Nyx: Well...well? Come on people! Speak up! I wanna know what you think!**

**Puff: What if they're not thinking nice things?**

**Nyx: All the same...review? **


	14. Duodenitis

**Nyx: 'Tis Thursday! Duh! **

**Puff: Where are my doughnuts?!**

**Nyx: So, you all know how this goes-**

**Puff: Where are my _fucking_ doughnuts?!**

**Nyx: Don't own, not getting paid for this shit, OCs are mine, moving on...**

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_Somebody save me_  
_Let your warm hands break right through it_  
_Somebody save me_  
_I don't care how you do it, just stay, stay_  
_C'mon, I've been waiting for you_

_-Save Me, Remy Zero_

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Chapter 14. Duodenitis

Daniil's house was a fortress of dark solitude in New York suburbia, his tastes being similar to his brother Frown's, except he preferred less decay and electricity to candles and boarded windows. This briefing was going to be somber with the news that had to be delivered.

It was important that the crew knew what was coming and exactly what they were up against. The dark power spreading across the States couldn't go unnoticed, nor ignored. She walked into the parlour where everyone was gathered, Daniil slumped in a plushy armchair, a glass well within reach; Nona was practically the same way, half sleeping on the vintage couch, having obviously just woken up.

"So, what's up?" Liam asked, breaking the tense silence. Bella and Max exchanged a look, one face grim the other solemn.

"We have a problem," Bella said.

"And what, pray tell, might that problem be?" Nona said drowsily, "Please, enlighten us."

"Would this so called 'problem' happen to start with an 'F'?" Liam asked, "'Cause I think we're already aware of that one."

"No," Max said, "this one...is much bigger."

"And it starts with an 'M'," Bella said. Liam went to point at Max, and Bella rolled her eyes. "Monsters, you ignorant mundane. Monsters. Do your homework."

"You're sure?" Azazel said from his place near the cold fireplace.

"Positive," Max confirmed.

"We ran into an eight-legged friend in the Valley of the Sun," Bella said, "perhaps you've heard of the arrogant weaver from the Greek myths?"

"Arrogant weaver, what?" Carrie blurted, some of her thick hot chocolate coating her top lip.

"Arachne," Azazel said it like a curse, "you killed her right?"

"She shriveled up and died on the street," Bella said.

"Good," Azazel said.

"But the sighting of one monster is not enough proof that we have a full scale demonic uprising on our hands," Daniil said tiredly, "we can't very well confirm-"

"You finish that sentence and I'll gut you myself," Bella said darkly, "I cannot believe that you'd go so far as to look me in the face and say that. Turn on the goddamn news once in a while, use the wealth I know you have to pay for a few months of cable, and you'll see the signs."

"Two nights ago, more than five cars were squashed on the interstate. Flattened like tin cans," Max said and Daniil straightened at the news.

"If that's not a sign of giants or cyclopes then I don't know what is," Bella announced, "last week in Utah, a couple were found on the street with six degree burns, from sort of unidentified acid. Six people in Wyoming, turned to stone."

"Shit just got real," Liam muttered.

"That's an understatement," Max replied.

"If...if this is all credible-" Azazel began.

"There's no denying that its credible," Nimueh said from her spot in the other armchair, pausing in her whittling to address the room. She'd been awful quiet since the start of the briefing and technically wasn't supposed to be there, considering she wasn't a Reaper, but she'd already done so much for them they considered her part of the crew anyway, that and trying to kick out Nimueh would be signing a death warrant.

"And since it is...we're short on time," she spoke with an eerie sort of calm. Chances were, she'd already seen everything and come to terms with it, knowing Nimueh she wouldn't give away any details, not unless it meant the difference between life and death.

Now with the prospects of a horrifying future laid out on the proverbial table, it had very well come to that. "A fickle thing, that," she said, "dangerous and elusive. Deadly thing time." she examined the hunk of wood she'd taken to carving, not even finished yet and a shape had barely defined itself. "How short?" Azazel pressed.

"We only have a month, month and a half if we're lucky," Nimueh said. The Reapers stirred uneasily at her words, giving them a time frame only made everything seem that much more real, that much more perilous and there was no denying that dark times were coming.

The monster sightings, the demonic energy spreading across the United States and more than likely, the entire world; everything was going to change. "Only that long," Carrie whispered, "we may as well dig our graves now."

"The Council needs word of this," Azazel said.

"And which one of us would tell them dear boy?" Daniil spoke up, "You?" Azazel's jaw tensed, hating the reminder of what he was, that the council still didn't trust him.

"I'll let my father know," Bella said, "he'll alert the Council."

"And what'll we do then?" Nona asked sitting up straighter, "What will we do if the Council doesn't believe him and we'll be in the middle of a war with no soldiers and no resources!"

"Then we'll gather our own army," Max said, "round up our own fighters, and don't stop training until the time comes."

"You're crazy," Liam said, "then we'd be rogues."

"You would be Reapers," Nimueh said.

"So...when do we leave for Seattle?" Carrie asked.

"After we get word from the Council," Bella said, "we'll need to know their verdict first."

"Until then, we train," Azazel said, "if we're gonna beat this...we'll need as much skill on our side as we can get."

"We need a bigger plan of action than that and all of you know it," Daniil spoke up. "I don't care how much I like all of you, I am not flying into this blind. This is war, not another regular patrol."

"Dammit, Daniil, we know!" Azazel growled, violet eyes flashing, "You think I wanna face my pedigree after all these years?"

"You don't know who will come out of that trap," Nona spoke up this time, the voice of reason, "you don't know-"

"The hell I don't! You think I don't know, I do," this was the first time they'd seen Azazel with this much fire, this much anger. They'd all seen him when he was brewing and ready to blow a top but this was entirely different. "I can _feel_ him, like he's really there. With me," Azazel seethed, "It feels like I should be able to hear his thoughts too, that I'm that fucking close to his presence."

Apparently this was the first time Nimueh was hearing this, because although she kept her eyes trained on her project and her body somewhat relaxed there was a subtle tension there and Bella could feel it if she dared take a step close enough. Bella moved to the fireplace, her lips barely moving as she started a blaze there, immediately filling the room with heat.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Carrie said softly, her big eyes shiny. Everyone in that room knew how he struggled with the part of him that was all demon and no mercy. It was a constant internal war with him but the rest of them never called him out on it, letting him deal with his issues easily pretending that he was a brick wall with a layer of steel, that nothing could touch him. Bella rested her forehead in her hands, "This changes things," she muttered.

"Hell yeah it does," Liam burst, "if the Prince of Hell is coming to Earth then we're all fucking fucked!" and it was like taboo for as soon as the words were out of his mouth, the room felt cold. A very icy cold, and they could all see their breath in front of their faces and Azazel froze, feeling the darkness crawl up his spine and hearing the rattling breath of evil just outside the house.

There was no mistake as to exactly what lay beyond the safety of the house and Carrie immediately scrambled to press her hands to the Mark scribed indiscriminately into the wallpaper. She pressed her palm to the blocked 'R' marked into the wall, and there was a subtle shift as if the foundation of the house had changed, meaning that the wards were up keeping the Reapers inside behind a strong shield. Blades were drawn and shadow stained their clothes and they were all on the alert. "They're not out back," Liam said, looking out the window, "Z?"

"If I could get out to the roof-" Max started.

"We have to stay behind the wards," Nona negated, "leaving this house is not an option." there was a subtle sound, so subtle that even Azazel with his senses missed it, and only the tinkle of shattering glass was the warning. A cold pain spread up her torso, numbing her senses and bringing her to her knees. The world around her dulled into that one concentrated point of pain, a Vaegulian arrow sticking prominently out between two of her ribs.

"Bella!" the shout was muffled, far away almost like she was underwater or half-asleep. Her lips parted in the smallest gasp and she barely registered her blood, warm and wet beginning to stain her clothes. Her weight tipped forward, and her arms instinctively came out to catch her but they buckled underneath her and she went down hard to the floor, landing on her side.

Her sight went hazy and she could barely see, her mouth gaping as her breathing became shallow. There was only pain, especially when a hand reached out and pulled the arrow from her. "Help her...!"

"...poison..."

"...Azazel!" and her eyes drifted shut.

* * *

**Nyx: So...er...review?**

**Puff: Why'd you have to throw out my doughnuts?**

**Nyx: You're on a diet you moron! Now, shut up and let the readers do their thing. **


	15. Aegrotos

**Nyx: I'm at a loss.**

**Puff: Nyx...do I have any fish stuck in my teeth? **

**Nyx: Um, Puff, there's such a thing as floss you know. Anyhoo, don't own, blah blah blah. Happy reading!**

**Puff: Hard to be happy when this segment is so darn depressing! **

* * *

_Don't go, I can't do this on my own._  
_Don't go, I can't do this on my own._  
_Save me from the ones that haunt me in the night._  
_I can't live with myself, so stay with me tonight._  
_Don't go, I can't do this on my own._  
_Don't go (you're not alone)_  
_Save me from the ones that haunt me in the night._  
_I can't live with myself, so stay with me tonight._  
_Don't go._

_-Don't Go, Bring Me The Horizon_

* * *

Chapter 15. Aegrotos

Jasper started feeling an icy pain in his chest right where the ache used to be and he immediately put his hand there. And it was a peculiar thing to feel cold after all of these years; his brain was nearly unable to comprehend that what he felt was cold, it sure as hell wasn't heat he was feeling. He knew what heat felt like and this was definitely not it.

"Something's wrong," he muttered, getting to his feet and making for the door. Peter and Charlotte exchanged a look before dropping whatever was in their hands and following them, stopping to snatch up the keys to their car.

"Jasper, what the hell is wrong-?" Charlotte said, "And slow the fuck down, you're being too conspicuous!" Jasper immediately took on a human pace, gritting his teeth with frustration.

"Char's right," Peter said, "take a deep breath. Just hold on 'til we're behind the wheel." Jasper was practically shaking, his instincts going fucking haywire and for once he was going to listen to them. He snatched the keys from Peter's hands once they reached the ground floor, nearly crushing them in his hands in his anxiety. He calmed the tiniest bit when he was behind the wheel of the vehicle, barely able to hold on while his companions climbed in next to him and Jasper gunned it, throwing the car into reverse and heading out towards the highway.

He weaved in and out of traffic, narrowly avoiding getting a ticket for his ungodly speed. He turned down the familiar street, his eyes sharp and unable to miss a single detail. He finally pulled up to the blue brownstone and got out looking around, his gut told him to be here, so where was the reason...? And it pulled up, shiny and black.

Peter drooled as he watched it roll to a stop, giving the car the same look he gave Char when she wore her sexiest jeans, but with a touch of awe that would have made the sight comical if Jasper hadn't smelled blood. Several Reapers poured out of the car, the tall dark haired one, incredibly familiar reached into the back seat and pulled out the unmistakable body of Bella. Jasper's feet moved without him telling them to, drawing close enough to really hear the terrible wheezing coming from her throat.

They didn't even see him, brushing past him and up into the house and he stared after them, in total shock though his instincts told him to go after them. And then he felt a hand on his arm and he turned to look down at the white-haired woman that had encouraged him to assert the feelings that sat heavily on his heart, the wise silver-gray eyes unmistakable. "What happened?" he asked, barely getting the question past.

"Vaegul," she murmured, "taking revenge for their master." It sounded like something out of a Tolkien novel only this felt much more real and the name instinctively sent chills down his spine.

"Will she live?" Jasper asked.

"That's entirely up to her," Nimueh murmured, "for now...I think you and your friends should follow me.'' Nimueh's house was cozy, she'd obviously made it home if the blue paint wasn't indication enough. Jasper itched to go up those stairs to see how she was and whether or not she lived. He could hear her heartbeat, erratic and smell her scent, delicious and heady but..._tainted_.

Peter and Charlotte saw how wired he was and when Azazel came downstairs with blood smeared on his arms it took all of Jasper's will not to break his neck and shatter his skull.

"She's stable for now," Azazel told Nimueh, "you okay?"

"I'm not the one who got shot," Nimueh said, "but we have some new friends that need to be introduced." just as she said this, Carrie came down the stairs, her features tired. "Major, this is Azazel, and Carrie. Carrie, Z, this is Jasper, Peter and Charlotte Whitlock."

"How do you know our names?" Peter asked, red eyes narrowing.

"I know shit," Nimueh shrugged and smirked.

"I don't believe we've formally met," Jasper said to her, his entire body tense.

"Forgive me, Major," Nimueh said taking a bow, "Nimueh Mcalister-Swan, at your service."

"What actually happened?" Jasper asked, "I want to know."

"She was shot with a Vaegulian arrow," Azazel said, his inked arms folded across his chest, an uneasy look on his face.

"Nim?" Carrie asked sounding small, "Is...is she going to die?"

"No," Nimueh said softly, "what will happen if we don't find an antidote will be much worse."

"Antidote?" Jasper asked, Peter and Charlotte stood off silently, observing all of the goings-on and trying to come up with a conclusion.

"The poison they use is very rare and is found in the black halls in which the Vaegul live," Azazel spoke up, his deep voice low and filled with hate towards these dark creatures, "it works much like your vampire venom, if allowed to run it's course for seven days and seven nights she will become like them, consumed with shadow and their eternal servant. Once that stage is reached there is no cure."

"There must be something we could do," Carrie whispered, "we can't just...let her become like them."

"Carrie, contact the rest of the Swans," Nimueh said, "we'll need their firepower." Peter and Charlotte exchanged a look, unsure of what to make of these kids, for that's what they were, kids. Obviously Jasper's Bella was important to them, and Peter didn't have to be Marcus Volturi to see that the bonds between them were very much like that of a tight-knit family. Jasper swallowed hard, the cold ache in his chest beginning to throb, "Can I see her?" he asked and Nimueh looked at him.

"You didn't have to ask," she told him.

"I wanted to," he replied.

"You're a strange vampire, Whitlock," Nimueh said sounding so much like the girl that he wanted in his arms at that very moment. He followed her scent to the room where she was staying, and he almost wished he'd stayed downstairs, but he fought to stay on the threshold and tried to stay strong.

The task was nearly impossible, watching her lay there and gasp in pain, her breathing shallow like she was having difficulty, sweat plastering her beautiful hair to the exposed flesh on her face and neck. He finally gathered the strength to step forward and take her hand and she opened her eyes slightly, letting him glimpse the milky haze that had begun to stain the brown of her irises. "I wish I could take away your pain," he told her, "I wish I could help." he felt so useless kneeling there by her bedside, unable to get past the barriers she still had up, protecting him from the agony of the poison.

"Jasper," she said hoarsely, gripping his hand, "its...its cold."

"We'll keep you warm," he said pulling the blankets over her without a second thought, "don't worry." she drew in a sharp gasp of pain, her eyes rolling shut and her grip on Jasper's hand went slack slightly. "Don't leave me," he begged, kissing her palm, "I just found you." He felt a hand on his shoulder before he smelled the scent that belonged with it, immediately identifying Charlie.

"Is there a cure?" Jasper asked.

"I'm not sure," Charlie said, "there have always been rumors, of course. But whether those rumors are actually true...this is a very precarious situation. There's always a chance that attempting to make an antidote could make the poison more potent." Jasper had nothing to say, keeping his eyes on her face that he'd only recently got reacquainted with. "Demosthenes is downstairs speaking with Nimueh, she might know something."

"It seems she knows a lot of things," Jasper muttered to which Charlie chuckled.

"You could say that." in a breath, Charlie had left the room, leaving Jasper alone with her. Her eyelids twitched while her eyes rolled, her healthy red mouth was now a pale bloodless pink, stained blue around the corners of her mouth. Jasper swallowed hard and tucked her hand underneath the blankets he'd laid on top of her.

Smoothing her hair back from her sweaty forehead, her breathing shallow and uneven, shaky almost. He wasn't alone for too long though, and he barely recognized the scent as she entered the room, having only met her once. Bella's abuela was standing behind him, no doubt watching her granddaughter suffer with concern. The woman shuffled over to a rocking hair she'd conjured, taking a seat and wrapping her shawl that much tighter around her body.

She didn't make a move to crack open the worn book she'd brought with her, instead watching the vampire guard the Reaper. "I'm fully aware of the falsehood you told me at my son's house, young man," she said, and Jasper met her stern, perceptive eyes. But he could feel her worry, the concern she had for her granddaughter and the love one always harbors for their firstborn grandchild.

"I was aware of it the moment it came out of your mouth and I am all too aware of it now," there was an underlying Spanish accent, well-hidden like she'd been coming to the United States for quite some time. "I can see it plain as day on your face that you love her," she said, "and I can see that hurting her is the last thing you want. It's the last thing any of her family wants, my granddaughter has seen enough pain in her short life, I want the rest of it to be happy." Jasper didn't say anything, only swallowing dryly. "When my Baltasar died, it was hard to stay on my feet and keep being there for my two boys. Heartbreak ages you, boy, no matter who you are. And my Isabella there never got the chance to be a child because of what she'd been through."

"What is it you ask of me?" he said quietly, glancing back into her tear-glazed eyes that looked so much like Bella's he wanted to look away for a moment but held himself steady.

"I don't ask anything of you Major, if I did then you wouldn't be good for her." with that, Anita Swan opened her old copy of _War and Peace_ and began reading. Jasper thought on it for the moment before looking back at the suffering girl, brushing her hair away from her sweaty forehead and laying his head beside her hand. Consciously deciding that he would not leave her side until she was better.

* * *

**Nyx: 'Tis a little shorter than the rest, but it will have to suffice. **

**Puff: *whacks her with a pillow***

**Nyx: OI!**

**Puff: Oi yourself! Trying to sleep here!**

**Nyx: *steals his pillow and whacks him with it* Sparkly blue menace! Review? It'd be much appreciated. **


	16. Succuro

**Nyx: So, school's starting again soon. **

**Puff: Yep.**

**Nyx: Means summer is almost over and I've got too much shit to worry about. **

**Puff: I think I'll stay home this time, last year I almost got stolen! **

**Nyx: So, don't own, OCs are mine. You steal, I kill you. Moving on!**

* * *

_Make your choice _  
_They say you've been pleading_  
_Someone save us _

_Heaven help us now _  
_Come crashing down _  
_We'll hear the sound _  
_As you're falling down _

_-Heaven Help Us, My Chemical Romance_

* * *

Chapter 16. Succuro

They played the waiting game for three days; three days of frantically looking through texts and asking around about a cure. Azazel had disappeared last night, and Nimueh was growing anxious.

She gritted her teeth and did her best to hang in there, but she bit nervously at her lip ring while looking through another tome. Liam had gone to the archives and dug up everything he could on the Shadow Poison that the Vaegul used on their weapons.

The Vaegul weren't like demons, they were like faerie men that had been overtaken by the dark powers. They were few but powerful, which explained how one of their arrows passed through the wards. But the wards were supposed to block any menace, inanimate or otherwise from getting in.

The only explanation would be that the arrow was fired right before the wards went up. The timing made sense, and as a psychic she knew a lot about time. She flipped through several more pages, her eyes scanning the text for a hint of anything that could cure the poison. The door opened, admitting Liam and Max into the house. "There no more signs of any _Vaegul_ around," Max informed her, "Have the vampires left yet?"

"Jasper's still here," Nimueh muttered, flipping a few more pages, "I don't know where his protégées went."

"Fucking wonderful," Max replied, "and where the hell is Azazel?"

"The hell if I know," Nimueh replied, "Dem and Charlie had to leave for a few hours to settle some affairs, and abuela is still upstairs with Jasper." Max rubbed at her forehead, brushing her sandy hair out of her face. "We're fucking fucked if we don't find Z," Liam muttered, "he's one of our best fighters."

"He'll come home," Nimueh said, "I know he will." she flipped another few pages, pale eyes scanning the text. Not ten minutes later, Azazel did come home dragging a reluctant Lycan along beside him. "Z! You okay?" Max asked.

"Where the hell were you, man? We tried tracking you but it's like you vanished," Liam said.

"I was seeking out the advice of an old friend of ours," Azazel said, pointedly clapping the Lycan on the shoulder. Cato's nose wrinkled in distaste, eyes flashing an irritated yellow before raising them to meet the pale irises of the psychic and he smirked, "Nimueh...how lovely to see you again."

Azazel's eyes tightened with a tightly controlled rage. "Why'd you bring him here?" Nimueh asked.

"He had information that we needed," Azazel said.

"Yes about Vaegul poison," Cato drawled, "I know a magi who has what you need."

"And...?" Nimueh raised an eyebrow.

"In return for the cure she wants the horns of a minotaur," Azazel said stiffly, "but we don't have that kind of time."

"She's the only option you have," Cato growled. Nimueh sighed and rubbed at her temples.

"Fucking hell," she muttered.

"How in the hell are we gonna find a minotaur? Better yet, how are we supposed to take off the horns?" Max demanded, immediately getting angry. Cato's attention was instantly on her, a little smirk on his features as he looked her up and down, obviously liking what he saw.

"The magi doesn't care how you do it, just as long as you get it done, that's her price and she's not changing it," Cato said.

Nimueh frowned a little, deep in thought before she finally said, "Take me to her." Cato looked at her.

"Why?"

"I want to negotiate with this woman," Nimueh said, "Azazel, Liam, Max, get to work. If this doesn't work, I want a Plan B. Move your arses." Azazel grumbled but did as she said, gesturing to Max and Liam.

Nimueh left out the door with the irritable Lycan, while Azazel was left with his two Reaper companions, a depressed vampire upstairs and a concerned grandmother. "Got any ideas?" Max deadpanned, staring with thinly veiled disgust after the Lycan.

"First things first," Azazel said, "anyone know where Carrie is?"

_**x-x-x**_

He was an ugly brute, at least eight feet tall with ropes upon ropes of muscle and large bull's horns jutting straight from the top of its hideous furry head between its ears.

It turned out that the problem hadn't been finding the damn minotaur, though tracking it had taken up hours, but defeating it was going to take a fucking miracle. "Holy fucking shit on an omelet," Max swore, staring up at the beast.

"Ditto," Liam muttered weakly.

"Let's kill it," Azazel said decisively, immediately earning him looks that were equal parts appalled and terrified from his fellow Reapers.

"Are you insane?!" they both burst.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Liam squealed, pointing, "It's like a furry mountain...with _horns!_"

"A challenge then. Excellent." Azazel murmured, his violet irises were beginning to darken, becoming a frightening and bottomless onyx. He'd recognized that he wouldn't be able to defeat the ancient monster by himself, tapping into his demonic powers would give him a supreme advantage. How much of an advantage, Azazel wasn't entirely sure.

It felt like he was embracing an old friend...and he hated it.

He bared his weapon, holding the handle of the heavy greatsword as if it weighed next to nothing. Carrie was perched on a rooftop, prepared with her bow and arrow to fire should the need arise.

The creature charged with a roar that shook the earth, horns turned out to impale and gore. Swearing, the three dispersed, drawing their weapons and making their first slashes at the creature, realizing that his muscle acted also as armor, causing the specialized Reaper metal to glance off in a shower of sparks. Immediately going for the heart wasn't going to work.

Max didn't dare unfurl her wings lest the minotaur snatch her out of the sky and crush them. They were going to have to take this old school. Azazel went for the ankles, intending on bringing the mountainous creature down, his compatriots followed suit. But the minotaur kicked, stamped and charged at them with large cloven hooves, swiping with hands the size of trash can lids.

It really was no more than a beast, apparently being locked in a vault for several millennium did nothing to change that. The arrow was silent, striking the animal in the nose and the minotaur reared, releasing an almighty roar revealing a soft spot at the base of his short thick neck. Looking at Max, her face sporting a very ugly bruise he tapped the hollow of his throat and she nodded in acknowledgement.

Carrie let loose another arrow, this one blazing with magic and striking the beast in the shoulder and it let out an enraged snort before bellowing into the sky. Using his preternatural speed, Azazel scaled the beast's torso, using the ridges in its muscle-armor for hand holds while Max used handfuls of its thick hair to climb the spine. So incensed was the minotaur that it barely noticed the two Reapers scaling its body like insects before it was too late and Azazel's sword was driven into the soft spot at the base of its neck, the blade singing its raspy song as it passed through blood, flesh and sinew.

Max's sword followed, the point coming inches from his nose and the ancient creature made a noise of confusion, before snorting and beginning to sway. Weapons dissolved into dark smoke as the Reapers made a jump for it, crouching low to the ground as the minotaur went down heavily, inciting light tremors in the earth. Azazel's eyes lightened into violet, observing the fallen carcass of the beast with weary eyes.

"Well...that went well." he got no reply save for Max's heavy breathing and her light footsteps as she looked around for Liam, finding the human boy passed out and heavily bleeding on the other end of the alley having taken a hard blow to the head. Azazel's hand passed through the air, his hand partially open as if grasping a handle, said handle coming into existence with a push of his will. He flipped the blade, the scythe becoming an ax.

"Hmm..." he mused, the ax shrinking to become a hunting knife, a finely serrated blade and he went to work sawing at the horns. Though that quickly proved futile, he ended up chopping at the old ivory with the ax instead, holding up one for further inspection. The horns were so much more elaborate than the naked eye could see. Faded tribal carvings, runes more like, were carved into the thick of the horn.

Carrie dropped in, her bow gone and her cloak drawn up around her face, the creases under her eyes indicating she found the smell from the now decaying corpse, absolutely putrid. "Ugh, for the love of Christ!" she swore, "Can we please get a move on? I can't take the smell of rotting man-bull," she pleaded. Azazel picked up the other horn, noticing the same runes carved on them.

"Yeah..." he muttered absently, frowning at the runes that struck a chord in him. They looked familiar, he just couldn't remember where. Max hefted a groaning Liam over her shoulder, "A little help here!" she complained.

Carrie opened a portal and Max was the first to gratefully step through, hauling Liam's weight up the steps of Nimueh's bluestone on the other side of town. Carrie was next and Azazel last, opening up the door to the house to find an irritated psychic and a lounging Lycan, reclined on the couch watching an inane television show. "We got the horns," Azazel said holding them up. Nimueh looked up, silver eyes gray with irritation and weariness.

"Excellent," she muttered, "we don't need them." Max promptly let Liam's weight collapse as she launched into a foul tirade.

* * *

**Nyx: Eh...I'm not too happy with this chapter. Methinks I did something wrong. But what does youthink? **

**Puff: That sounded so much better out loud. **

**Nyx: Methinks he doth complain too much.**

**Puff: Now you're just mocking me.**

**Nyx: Methinks the readers should review. **

**Puff: Methinks so as well...now you've got me doing it! GAH!**


	17. Antidotum

**Nyx: A day late. Yet another reason to hate me.**

**Puff: That blonde chick that teaches Photography is really nice. Should I bring her a cake because she's so nice?**

**Nyx: Uh...no. It's bad enough you followed me to class, having you leave her a cake would get me into trouble. **

**Puff: Darn.**

**Nyx: So, don't own, if I did probably wouldn't be here. Blah blah blah. MUSIC!**

* * *

_I dare you to move_  
_I dare you to move_  
_I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor_  
_I dare you to move_  
_I dare you to move_  
_Like today never happened_  
_Today never happened before_

_-Dare You to Move, Switchfoot_

* * *

Chapter 17. Antidotum

Nimueh had made one of the ultimate exchanges: a secret for a secret. In return for the knowledge of the antidote to the potent Shadow poison, she'd given the magi knowledge as well. But the reasons as to why the magi had wanted the horns of the minotaur was as of yet another mystery left unsolved and Azazel had a feeling that it involved the runes carved into the aged ivory.

He'd approached Nimueh with the horns, asking for her knowledge and she'd frowned, delicate fingers following the patterns. She'd murmured to herself in another language before promising that she would figure them out at another time and in the meantime, she set about preparing the cure.

And Jasper, was oblivious to it all. His thoughts bent on her while she lay there fighting off the potent poison, her veins standing out against her pale skin, so blue they looked almost black. Reaching greedily for her heart and slowly, tortuously, taking her life away. Fathomless black eyes were filled with years upon years of sorrow, a helplessness making him feel such despair that he almost wished he could never feel again.

He could feel her body heat dwindle, she still felt warm to him but barely so. He'd inquired as to whether venom could save her life and the answer was a vehement 'no'. A resounding denial and a spark of dread in those usually calm, unflappable eyes of the albino. And so he'd resumed his post, the ever faithful watchdog, perfectly poised at her side in the few days that felt like a few grueling centuries.

Abuela Swan had long gotten up from her rocking chair and departed downstairs to take a break from sitting. He twitched as he felt a hand on his shoulder, warm and pulsing with life. His throat flared as he took in Nimueh's scent.

"Jasper, you have to feed," she told him and he made a low noise in his throat, part of him begging for blood the other absolutely refusing to leave her. "Charlotte's waiting downstairs with something for you, but I must have solitude while I administer this." he stubbornly sat and her eyes narrowed at him. "Don't make me use magic to throw you out on your sorry arse," she threatened and he growled but finally stood, recognizing that he would be a danger to Bella if he continued on without feeding, walking downstairs where Charlotte had several bags of blood and plasma waiting for him.

He waited impatiently as the blood was served to him by the mugful, gulping each warm mouthful and holding out his cup for more like a beggar. When he'd finally drunk his fill and felt as close to normal as he could get, he stood and strode from the kitchen, taking the stairs two at a time.

He reached the landing just as Nimueh stepped out of the bedroom and put a hand on his chest. "Whoa there, slow your roll Cowboy," she said in a flawless American accent, "she'll be fine without you hanging over her like an old dead goose."

"I've already broken my promise to not leave her side," he said, "I'm not too keen on making it stay that way."

"And who did you promise? You certainly didn't promise me, or her. She's not going to hold it against you, and if she does blame it on me," Nimueh said shrugging, putting the piercing in her tongue between her teeth, playing with it.

"I-" he began.

"Jasper, being cooped up in that room is doing you about as much good as Shadow poison did her," Nimueh said, "you can relax and wait until she wakes up, I'm pretty sure she'll know you were never too far away while she was unconscious."

"Wait. You mean...you found a cure?" he asked, completely astonished and Nimueh frowned at him.

"And where the hell were you when we were discussing it in the living room? Last I checked, your ears worked just fine," she said, "honestly man, you're in a house full of people that can cut you up as easily as you can kill a random hobo." he glowered at her, even though he knew what she was saying was true. "Besides, you would have been of more use to us helping us research instead of sitting on your arse and moping all fucking week," she told him bluntly.

And he immediately saw what Bella did in her: a blunt, straightforward person, even though her honesty was almost harsh it was still refreshing to come across someone who was so straight up. It helped that she obviously cared a great deal for Bella, and it was because of her he got his head out of his ass and confronted Alice about wanting a divorce after so many years of wasting time, attempting to make their decaying marriage work.

In a way, he owed her a debt.

And he didn't like it.

He sighed and rubbed at his face, "Fine," he grumbled, giving the psychic a withering look.

"Good, you can help me research something until our mutual friend wakes up," Nimueh said, grabbing him by his collar to haul him downstairs, apparently making sure that he wouldn't try to slip by her and lock himself in Bella's room. Nimueh had several heavy tomes out laying around on the living room table and some even on the couch and one on the floor. Each of them had lengthy titles, some written in old English where the extra 'e's were entirely unnecessary in this day and age. She handed him one of the few books written in English.

"You mind telling me what we're looking for?" he asked. She held up a finger, the universal sign for him to wait a minute while she went to fetch something, bringing out a black felt bag, like one you'd get at the supermarket, and pulling out a huge bull's horn. Lengthwise it was from the tip of his middle finger to about halfway up his forearm, curving into an absolutely evil looking point and it was made of thick aged ivory, much like elephant's tusks.

Jasper took it with care into his hands, gently turning it over and briefly wondering if this was what Carlisle felt like when he discovered something that absolutely fascinated him. His keen eyes could make out faded runes carved into the ivory.

"You're going to help me research those runes," Nimueh told him, "seeing as you're the oldest person in this house besides abuela. Do you recognize them at all?" he frowned, holding the horn closer to his face to better examine it.

"It almost looks like a cross between Arabic and a language of Ancient Sumeria," he said, his degrees in history paying off, along with his extensive research of mythology to better understand what Bella was up against in this world. She looked contemplative, her eyes distant while she was lost in thought.

"Start reading," she told him, "I have a hunch, but I want to be absolutely positive before I form any theories." he blinked at her, shrugged and sat on the couch, making himself comfortable before cracking open the large heavy book.

_**x-x-x**_

Jasper was rather glad that vampires couldn't get headaches, for he was entirely sure he'd have a migraine at that particular moment in time. He combed through the few books that were written in English, jotting down things he found that he thought might help. The both of them worked tirelessly, and, being a typical vampire, he lost track of time seeing as having so much in abundance made one forget the hour.

So when Azazel came in, he took one look and Nimueh and asked her how long she'd been awake, and she yawned in response despite having at least five cups of coffee. "Since yesterday I think," she said, flipping another page in a tome written in a language that looked like a cross between Arabic calligraphy and backwards Hebrew.

Azazel's eyes flicked to him, "And you, you let her stay up all night?" he demanded, obviously upset. Though Jasper failed to see why and looked up at the Reaper with apathetic eyes.

"I didn't _let_ her do anything, she asked me to help her I didn't see any reason to turn into her father and order her to bed."

"That's Dem's job," Nimueh snorted, "and even he doesn't do it." Jasper blinked, surprised that Demosthenes was Nimueh's father. Honestly, he was curious as to how that entire story played out but he was more focused on keeping his mind occupied after going literally stir-crazy after sitting by Bella's bedside for days on end. "Go to bed," Azazel ordered and Nimueh immediately turned into a five-year-old, crossing her arms and pouting.

"No," she said petulantly. He sighed, and his shoulders visibly sagged with the motion, "You need to sleep," he told her and she looked away sulkily. "I'm not gonna," she said, "you can't make me. I'd prefer to get this done as quickly as I possibly can."

"You know what happens when you don't sleep," Azazel said but Nimueh's jaw set stubbornly.

"I don't care," she said, "I want to know whats the deal with these horns and why."

"There'll be plenty of time for that later," Azazel said and picked her up like she was made of feathers instead of flesh and meat.

"But I don't wanna! Azazel!" she whined as he hauled her up the stairs to her bedroom and Jasper heard her protests, holding back a smile. Jasper could easily read the love the boy had for the strange girl, and it made his mouth quirk a bit at the thought.

He wasn't going to say anything, figuring he'd let the boy fight his own battles, after all, he was a Reaper. Azazel skulked down the stairs on ghost feet, beginning to tidy up the various mugs and cups that Nimueh had spread out on the table, but he let her books be. Jasper continued to read on, taking note of an interesting blurb and deciding to discuss it with Nimueh later. Azazel came back into the living room, holding a fresh mug of coffee.

"What happens if she doesn't sleep?" Jasper asked him and Azazel paused as he lifted the cup to his mouth.

"Trust me, you don't wanna know," and took a gulp of his coffee. Jasper decided to take his word for it, detecting the rise of emotion in the boy, even though he didn't reveal it on his face.

"You love her," Jasper stated and Azazel paused again before taking another drink.

"I do," he said, "what of it?"

"Does she know?" Jasper asked, making conversation. He knew very well that Nimueh did not, he could easily tell. Azazel shook his head.

"There'd be no point," he said. Jasper frowned slightly.

"Why do you say that?" he asked, genuinely curious. Azazel looked at him with somber violet eyes.

"She deserves better," was all he said.

"I think you should let her be the judge of that," Jasper said, "you'll never know how she feels unless you ask her." Azazel said nothing and sat on the other end of the couch, putting down his half empty coffee cup. "I've loved her for a long time now. At first I denied it, thinking that loving someone was impossible for someone like me. Accepting it was the hard part, and then loving her was easy."

"But the hardest bit is telling her," Jasper said, nodding, "I know how that feels."

"How did you tell her?" Azazel asked, looking at him, and Jasper saw a teenager then instead of a Reaper, battle-hardened and cold. "Bella, I mean."

"I just...told her," Jasper said, "I took a leap of faith."

"Faith?" Azazel frowned and looked away, "faith isn't in my vocabulary. I'm half demon."

"Funny how the world works ain't it?" Jasper snorted, even though there wasn't even a smidgen of humor there.

"You mean funny as in, you show up and soon after the Vaegul follow?" Azazel said, face completely unamused.

"I don't have any idea who or what these Vaegul are," Jasper said, "but it doesn't stop me from wanting to tear every last one into pieces for hurting her."

"You know, you're alright, for a daywalker," Azazel said after a few moments, getting to his feet and picking up his mug, heading into the kitchen for more coffee. No sooner had he turned the corner, that Jasper's sensitive hearing picked up on movement from Bella's room and the change in her heartbeat. A sigh and a groan had him standing and heading for the stairs, appearing on the threshold of her bedroom and pushing the door open with the barest hint of sound.

Waiting with bated breath as Bella shifted her weight on the bed, turning over onto her stomach and burying her face in the pillow, letting out a sigh as she settled into sleep once more. Before he could make a conscious decision he was already standing by the bedside and reaching out to touch her, immediately realizing what he was doing then pulling away feeling like a creeper. She shifted slightly in her sleep and letting out a sigh and a single word: "Jasper."

* * *

**Nyx: Warm fuzzies! Plenty of them to go around! Now for your thoughts.**

**Puff: I think that I want spaghetti for dinner tonight.**

**Nyx: You're cooking it yourself, I'm not making pasta.**

**Puff: Grrr...**


	18. Pervigilo

**Nyx: So this week is on time! Woot woot!**

**Puff: Have I ever told you how much I love your cupcakes?**

**Nyx: Yes, Puff. Fifty-six times in the past hour actually. Now, I don't own, blah blah blah. If I did I'd be on a beach somewhere and I wouldn't have to worry about paying for college.**

**Puff: *shoves another cupcake in his mouth* Mmm...cupcake...**

* * *

_Time stood still_  
_The way it did before_  
_It's like I'm sleepwalking_  
_Fell into another hole again_  
_It's like I'm sleepwalking_

_-Sleepwalking, Bring Me The Horizon_

* * *

Chapter 18. Pervigilo

Everything slowly came into focus like she was seeing the world through a viewfinder, blinking to clear her vision. She stretched her arms above her head, her joints cracking as she arched her spine, her muscles greatly appreciating the small workout. She heard a chuckle and she immediately turned to see Jasper, watching her from the doorway, leaning up against the wall. "If that isn't the prettiest sight I've set my eyes on in years I don't know what is," he said.

"How long have you been standing there?" she asked, her voice rough with disuse.

"Few hours," he said, his dark red eyes inspecting and probing. She rubbed at her face and swung her legs over the side of the bed. "What time is it?" she asked.

"About five 'o clock," he said, "you've been asleep for several days." Bella remained hunched over, staring at her legs before looking up, confusion written on her usually placid face. "How am I still here?" she asked and Jasper frowned slightly.

"Huh?" he asked.

"I'm still...me," she said, floundering for words but Jasper understood.

"Nimueh found a cure," he said, "the woman's a miracle worker."

"I owe her my thanks," Bella nodded, "and my life." Jasper twitched, so desperately wanting to hold her, to pull her into his arms and make for certain that she was alright.

Bella observed her state of dress, noting that her shirt had been replaced and so had her jeans, but she still felt sticky all over, the result of laying in bed for several days on end, half-drowning in her own sweat. She stood on legs that felt almost like jelly, keeping a hand on the headboard to keep her balance and carefully taking a step, her knee immediately went weak, the unpleasant sensation of pins and needles shooting from her feet all the way up to her thigh.

Jasper caught her before she could even begin to make her descent towards the floor, his arms around her waist, supporting her weight. She looked up at him, her hands resting on his chest. This close to his face she could see the scars on his skin, the slightly raised teeth marks dotted along his neck close to his empty arteries, there was even a scar on his jaw, no doubt where a newborn had taken a chunk out of his face. Unthinkingly, she reached up, pressing her lips to that scar on his jaw letting them linger even though she realized exactly what she was doing.

She didn't want to stop, and that kind of scared her.

Jasper's hands on her waist, flexed slightly, his eyes drifting closed to better enjoy the feel of her kiss. All too soon she pulled away and he rested his forehead against hers. "You have no idea how relieved I am right now," he told her, and she could feel his breath on her lips. Their lips barely touched when Nimueh walked in,

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" she crowed, "The night is young and you smell like a sick person." Bella rolled her eyes, unappreciative of Nimueh's grand entrance.

"Perfect timing, Nim," Bella deadpanned, "really."

"You'll have time to hump like rabbits later," Nimueh said, "Dem and Charlie are coming back into town soon to make sure that you're okay and abuela just left for Spain." Bella took several steps away from Jasper turning on her heel to make for the shower, but Nimueh grabbed her hand and hauls her downstairs instead.

"Come on, I'm getting some food into you a-s-a-p. You haven't eaten for nearly a week," she said insistently. Bella opened her mouth in protest but her stomach gave a low angry gurgle, demanding that food be deposited there immediately, and she closed her mouth with a low click. Nimueh sat her down at the island, serving her a bowl of thick pea soup and handing her a spoon.

"Eat up," she told her. Bella rolled her eyes and lifted a spoonful of the soup to her mouth, raising an eyebrow at Nimueh as if to ask 'Satisfied?', but the psychic just returned the look and crossed her arms before raising both of hers.

She watched Bella eat half the bowl before taking her leave of the kitchen, and no sooner than Bella had her solitude was the moment that the door burst open and several Reapers came into the house. A bright red-headed blur practically tackled her out of her stool, and Bella gripped the counter for balance. "Oomph!" she muttered.

"Ohmigod ohmigod I am _so_ glad you're okay!" Carrie trilled at the top of her lungs, grabbing Bella's face in her little artistic hands and placing a kiss on her nose before continuing to speak several miles a minute. "I was afraid that you were gonna turn into a half demon thing and that we were gonna have to kill you because you'd be evil and stuff and...ooh! I'm just so glad you're alright!" she sniffled and wiped away a few tears before giving Bella another tight hug. Liam sighed as he walked into the kitchen, prying Carrie off the recently cured Warlock and giving her an apologetic smile.

"I'm glad to see you're alright, B," he said.

"How many cups of coffee has she had?" Bella asked, raising an eyebrow at the fading bruise blackening a good third of his face along with a scratch on his forehead that would leave a nasty scar in the future if he didn't take care of it.

"Um..." Liam's face scrunched up in thought.

"None!" Carrie squeaked, "Put me down Liam!" he obliged.

"Three I think," Liam said and Carrie kicked at his shins in indignation.

"Traitor!" she cried.

"What the hell, Carr?" Liam yelped, but the red-head had already stomped out of the kitchen. Bella put her bowl in the sink before venturing into the living room. Azazel was lurking in the corner as if this were a usual briefing, his arms crossed putting his tattoos on display. But there was something off about his stance and the look on his face.

To someone who didn't know or understand exactly how to read Azazel's face, all they would see was the stubborn mask he always had in place, they wouldn't notice that he wasn't taking in his surroundings as usual, instead his eyes were focused on only one thing or rather, one person. Bella watched him for several beats, waiting for him to notice or feel her gaze and yet he was so lost in thought that he didn't so much as twitch.

Her eyes flicked to the psychic who was restacking a few old books she'd set out on the table, all of them written in dead languages save a few. Bella frowned at one that read 'Ye Olde Demonology' and tilted her head curiously before shaking her head and deciding that she didn't really want to know.

Nimueh clapped her hands, "All right! I can't have you clogging up my house, Carrie you're gonna be late for your class," to which the red-head squeaked a panicked 'goodbye' and fled the house, "so I'll need you all to clear out. Yes, Bella's returned to health, yay!" Nimueh said exuberantly, "But, she's still in recovery and needs her quiet time. So move your arses! You'll see her at the briefing! Shoo!"

Liam and Max took their leave, already dressed in Reaping garb for their shift on patrol, arguing about who was taking the east side and who was taking the west side on the way out of the door.

Bella turned to make for the stairs but Nimueh stopped her, "B, I'll need you to spend a couple nights elsewhere while I clean out your room." Bella stopped and turned to look at her.

"I wasn't aware that I made such a mess."

"Look, I don't want to take any chances with the Shadow Poison. That shit is dark magic and dark magic in my house isn't gonna fly," Nimueh said, "that shit sticks and I won't have it here." Bella nodded.

"I understand," she said.

"Good," Nimueh said with a nod before whipping around to look at Azazel. "You," she pointed, "need to go home and rest." Azazel shrugged.

"I'm fine," he said and Nimueh shook her head.

"I'm not havin' that," she said, "you forced me to sleep now I'll force you. Out!" Azazel gave a long-suffering sigh before stalking to the front door that swung open for him to grant him exit. "And don't come back until you've gotten at least eight hours in, capiche?"

"Yes, dear," Azazel deadpanned. Nimueh shut the door and turned to look at her.

"Men," she said shaking her head.

"Preach," Bella replied, smirking. Though she wondered why Azazel was acting so strangely, the others may not have noticed but she could definitely tell that something was up. But she wasn't sure whether to see that something as good or bad yet in order to address whether or not she should be worried.

For now, she had to focus on getting her strength again. A few more days and she'd be good to go back on patrol, that and she was the tiniest bit curious as to what the group got up while she was bedridden. After all, whatever had banged up Liam's face must have been big. Nimueh looked past her to the top of the stairs, the barest hint of a smirk in place. "You clean up good Major," she said.

"I just changed my shirt," he shrugged, descending the stairs and giving Bella a once over. "You ready to leave?" he asked.

"Pardon?" she frowned, just as the door opened.

"So, you _are_ awake," Dem announced, then looked at Nimueh, "Well done, my dear, well done." Jasper still couldn't get over the fact that Demosthenes was supposed to be Nimueh's father.

They didn't look anything alike, so he concluded that she was adopted. But it was still a strange thought... "I'm fine, stop fussing," Bella grumbled, "you're such a mother hen." she told her father who made a face at her.

"Oh don't pout, brother, its one of your more endearing qualities," Dem said in that smarmy tone. Charlie shot his brother a look, clearly unamused. Both of them were dressed crisply in pressed suits, obviously having come from doing business. The light summer rain left little crystal droplets on their jackets.

"I. Do not. Pout," Charlie said stiffly, squaring his shoulders and Dem smirked slowly, and Jasper could immediately see where Nimueh had gotten it from.

"Holy God, I'm fine!" Bella exclaimed, "I need space right now! Not..." she waved her hands around in a vague gesture, "this!" Nimueh sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Okay look, you and your boyfriend can go to the hotel while I clean up. We'll meet for brunch or something tomorrow 'kay?" she said ushering them towards the door without a backward glance at the two protective Warlocks standing in the middle of the living room.

Before Bella could say that she wasn't wearing any shoes, Nimueh had shut the door on them both, effectively kicking them out of her house. Bella and Jasper exchanged a look, suddenly feeling awkward and Jasper sighed, gesturing outward. "Shall we?" he asked.

"Where are you staying?" she sighed.

"Waldorf," he answered. With a nod, she had the portal waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs.

* * *

**Nyx: I might have a lemon for y'all next week. Cross your fingers, it might come up. **

**Puff: Yes, the readers need sexy times. *points to himself***

**Nyx: *rolls her eyes* Don't you have something else you could be doing?**

**Puff: Besides annoying you and encouraging the readers to review?**

**Nyx: *sigh* Yes, please review. It is much appreciated. If y'all give me enough love, I might throw a little citrus in there for ya. ;)**

**Puff: Emoticon moment! :D**


	19. Coagmentum

**Nyx: Hi all! Yeah, another late update. Gah...I had the chapter half-written last night and I told myself 'I will not rest until this is uploaded before midnight!' but then it would have been half-assed and you guys deserve better than that. **

**Puff: *O.e* How do you know they're all deserving?...I wonder...**

**Nyx: Stop doing that, it's creepy. So, you all know that I don't own anything you may recognize. My OCs are mine unless I say otherwise. Happy reading!**

* * *

_Working from seven to eleven every night, _  
_It really makes life a drag, I don't think that's right. _  
_I've really, really been the best of fools, I did what I could. _  
_'Cause I love you, baby, How I love you, darling, How I love you, baby, _  
_How I love you, girl, little girl. _  
_But baby, Since I've Been Loving You. I'm about to lose my worried mind, oh, yeah. _

_-Since I've Been Loving You, Led Zeppelin_

* * *

Chapter 19. Coagmentum

They'd gotten several odd glances from people in the lobby, but in 'anything goes' New York, Bella's going barefoot was probably not the weirdest thing to have walked into the hotel. Peter and Charlotte were conspicuously absent from the suite, and his eyes narrowed slightly. _Subtle, you two. Real subtle_, he thought. They were obviously trying to give them alone time, but to do it so blatantly was out of character for them.

Jasper wasn't so lust ridden for her that he'd seduce her just hours after her waking. He intended to give her several days of rest, and to let her come to him when she was ready, as torturous as the thought was. He itched to have her clothes off to give her a more thorough inspection, to make sure that she was really unharmed before making hot passionate love to her.

His thoughts were disturbed by the small noise she made as she collapsed into the sheets, snuggling into the high quality cotton and mashing her face into the giant overstuffed pillows.

Her eyes fluttered shut while her breathing evened out and her heart rate slowed. Jasper shook himself when he realized that he had been standing there just staring at her like a weirdo while she slept. And though he could stare at her all day, he preferred to keep the Warlock from running away screaming that he was a creeper like his estranged brother.

So he pulled out an old novel and sat up in bed next to her, reading for the next few hours while she slept. As soon as he finished that one, he started another, finishing the last page of the book just as she began to stir. She shifted, turning her face towards him letting out a sigh as her eyes fluttered open. He put aside his book and glanced at her.

"Sleep well?" he asked. She turned over onto her back and stretched, her back arching towards the ceiling and he stared shamelessly at her for several beats before his eyes moved up to her face. She caught his gaze and held it for a moment before she got off the bed and walked towards the shower, and Jasper swore he caught a bit more sway to her rounded hips than usual.

That fiery carnal urge that he felt the day they officially met again rose in his abdomen, settling in his groin and making him stiffen. His joints were tense with desire and eyes the darkest they'd ever been.

He heard the gentle whisper of her clothes falling and the sound of water, not taking more than several seconds to make up his mind and he was shedding his clothes as well then stepping into the shower behind her, sliding his hands to her hips.

She let out a small noise, relaxing back into his touch and he immediately set about to cleaning her skin, gathering suds from the complementary soap in his hands before slowly, gently dragging his fingers up and down her torso.

Massaging, cleaning and stimulating.

She bit her lip in an effort to keep quiet, his hands like heaven on her skin. His hands soaped her up and down her thighs, cleaning closely to where she ached for him but he made her wait and she felt the most damnable amount of impatience in that moment that she almost growled, instead it came out as a whimper, both feeling and hearing his low chuckle against her ear, sending a rush of heat to where she wanted his hands. And he finally touched her there, when she felt ready to hex him into the next year for teasing her so mercilessly.

She let out a breathless gasp, arching into his touch and pressing insistently on his talented fingers. His fingers danced around her clit, pressing in ever tightening circles before sliding one into her entrance, changing his angle with each reentrance as if he were looking for something.

And he hummed in triumph when her breathing changed, smiling against her neck. Her head tilted back, eyes rolling back into her head as her moans got louder and louder, finally coming undone on his fingers. She turned around in his arms, her fingers entangling in his hair as she pulled his head down to meet hers, mashing her mouth to his and his wet hands gripped her hips, pulling her closer and she could feel his erection against her stomach.

She stretched up on her toes in an attempt to capture more of his taste, heat spreading all the way down to her toes and the tips of her fingers. He growled deep in his chest, allowing her to feel the vibrations and her abdomen tightened in response to the sound, her hand sliding unconsciously to press against his erection and stroke him slowly. She felt more than she heard his moan, his hips thrusting into her touch, encouraging her to go further, to stroke him faster.

Then in a blink, he had her pinned against the tile of the shower wall, his hands pulling her knees up to hook over his hips before he sank into her, all the way to the hilt and delighting in the moan that escaped her pretty mouth. When he began to move, her sounds served as even more of a turn on, making him that much harder inside of her. If he wasn't careful, he'd come before they'd truly begun.

His lips attacked her neck, his lip covered teeth nipping up and down her skin before sucking on a spot on the juncture of where her neck met her shoulder until he felt the blood rise to the surface. He pulled away to leave a kiss on the temporary mark, his thrusts becoming harder until she was moaning and cursing in his ear. "Oh fuck," she breathed, kissing his neck, her nails breaking against his diamond hard skin as she neared release.

He lifted her higher against him, his rhythm just shy of bruising as she came undone around him, her eyes rolling back, lips parting in a silent scream. He continued to move, helping her ride out her orgasm as he reached his. He made a sound partway between a rolling growl and a deep groan, feeling the clench of her muscles around him. He reached to turn off the water, carrying her, boneless and dripping wet out of the shower.

He put her on the bed, standing back and letting his eyes peruse her, from the soft delicate globes of her breasts to the flare of her hips, down the toned length of her legs. And she watched him stare at her, practically feeling his touch even though his hands were locked at his sides. The look in his eyes made that familiar heat pool in her abdomen once more, like he wanted to consume her, to dominate and keep her as his prisoner.

And for the first time ever, she felt she wouldn't mind. She whimpered and squirmed a little under his gaze, silently begging for him to touch her. And it felt like days when he finally reached out and slowly slid his palm from her navel to the valley of her breasts.

He prowled towards her, looking every bit like the dangerous predator he was, coming to hover over her. Pressing his face into the crook of her neck he deeply inhaled, feeling something akin to dizziness, her scent the ultimate drug to him.

He gently pressed into her warmth, careful not to put all of his weight on top of her. Her breathing was soft and shallow in his ear as he kissed his way from her jugular, to her jaw and to her cheek finally resting his lips on hers.

She gave a little sigh, humming against his mouth then giving a little whimper when he traced the seam of her mouth with his tongue, gladly opening for him, her warm hands trailing up and down his back, caressing what she could reach of his spine. He shuddered against her, releasing her lips to allow her a breath, and attaching his lips to her neck instead. Tracing her throbbing artery with his tongue, sucking on her pulse point.

She bit her lip and released a little moan, arching into his body. "Jasper..." she begged, "Jasper, please." his answer was a forceful push, her mouth falling into that delectable little 'o'. His thrusts started out slow, ending each thrust with a slight lift of his hips, changing his angle on each reentry, searching for that spot and when he found it she made such a delightful sound that made him even harder.

Her hands gripped his hips, sliding around to cup a handful of his backside in each hand, urging him to go faster, to plow harder. He sucked a nipple into his mouth, flicking it with his cool tongue until the tip was red, swollen and oh so sensitive before doing the same to the other. His thumb going to her clit, feeling her walls begin to tighten around him with her oncoming release. Stroking her in ever tightening circles.

"I love you," he confessed in her ear, and all her walls dropped promptly, flooding him with her emotional cocktail. So much lust, spicy on his tongue, the light touch of her affection. He couldn't help but absorb her lust, mirroring it back into her combined with his, before he absorbed it all again. It kept going like a vicious circle, a never-ending cycle until there was no more room left in them and they both burst.

Riding wave after wave, Bella's body trembling with orgasm after orgasm, each one just as intense, if not more, than the last. The both of them lay there, attempting to catch their breath when their bliss came to an end. Bella's chest heaved with each shallow breath, her eyes half closed with blissful exhaustion. Satisfaction radiated from her pores, the post-coital glow making her radiant.

She sighed, her eyelashes fluttering against her cheek as she blinked lazily, as if her eyelids had weights. "Holy fucking God," she said, laughing breathlessly, "I can't feel my toes." she giggled harder, and his lip curled into a little smile, content and deliriously happy at the sound. He'd gotten her to laugh. To really laugh. Her giggles trailed off into a little yawn, her eyelids fluttering. "Jasper...?" she started to say.

"Hmm?" he asked, trailing his fingers up and down her torso, tracing her ribs, her collarbone and all the delectable lines he loved. She didn't answer, her breathing evened and her heartbeat slowed several beats as she fell asleep.

He kissed her forehead, scooping her up easily to tuck her beneath the sheets and she immediately buried her head further into the fluffy feather pillow. He smiled and laid beside her, feeling for the first time ever the warmth of happiness.

Because he'd gotten her to laugh.

* * *

**Nyx: And that's that. I swear, the fluff is unintentional.**

**Puff: *fanning himself* Ooh jeezus, I know what I'm doing this weekend?**

**Nyx: Er...yeah...I don't think I want to know. I'd advise that you read this note, considering that with all the busy things I've got going on until December comes, my updates will be changing from every Thursday to every Saturday. Maybe on Friday, depending on my workload. We shall see my dearests! Until next time!**


	20. Attactus

**Nyx: I know, I'm so sorry for being a week late but when you have the flu plus four hour rehearsals plus another two hours of homework you tend to die fifty times and have no time for writing or updating.**

**Puff: I didn't even want to breathe the same air as you. You humans are disgusting when you're sick.**

**Nyx: Thanks so much for that Puff. Really. **

**Puff: Your welcome!**

**Nyx: Well, I don't own, blah blah blah. **

* * *

_But it's so strange, it's something new  
Amazing feelings that I have for you  
I close my eyes when I'm alone  
Wonder what it'd be like to make you moan_

_I wanna give you something better_  
_Than anything you've ever had_  
_A stronger and a faster lover_  
_The world, it disappears so fast_

_-Kiwi, Maroon 5_

* * *

Chapter 20. Attactus

She unconsciously bit her lip, on the cusp of wakefulness as she let out a whimper, her hips attempting to arch off the bed. Finally starting awake when she felt his tongue at her entrance, her fingers gripping the sheets as she sat up to watch him, biting her lip at the visual of his head between her thighs. He looked up at her, watching her reaction and smirking. He had her legs spread far, leaving her open for his perusal.

Placing a hand on her lower abdomen and spreading his fingers to keep her still, he went in with one long slow taste. Her jaw went slack, any train of thought dissolving into nothing, all her senses bent on him and his sinfully talented tongue.

Her head tilted towards the ceiling, letting out a long low throaty moan as she came undone, twitching with the aftershocks of her orgasm as Jasper licked her clean and kissed her from navel to chin. "Good morning," he said just before giving her a chaste kiss.

"Mmm, good morning to you too," she said, "Your tongue should be illegal."

"I'll take that as a compliment," he smirked, letting his eyes roam over her.

"See anything you like?" she asked and his stare lingered on her breasts.

"You have no idea," he chuckled. She reached up to touch his face, and he closed his eyes leaning into her warm touch, holding his breath when her hand moved from his cheek to along his jaw, tracing the line of his neck and collarbone before dragging slightly down his torso, skimming the planes of his body, tracing his pectorals and abdominals. "Committing me to memory?" he asked.

She didn't answer, instead stretching up to kiss and nip at one of his nipples. Her kisses were feather light, airy and subtle yet left a tingling warmth wherever her lips touched him.

_ This must be magic_, he thought errantly as her fingers gently caressed his erection, dancing along his thickness instead of gripping him the way he wanted. She kissed a line down his torso, pressing an extra kiss to every scar she came across, the stimulation on the sensitive flesh sending white hot sparks to his groin.

He bit his lip in anticipation when she placed a kiss on his navel and released his breath when she kissed back up his torso, her hand skimming his thighs, her fingers lightly tracing the muscles that coiled, bunched and released in anticipation of her touch.

She stretched up on her knees to kiss and nip across his collarbones, her breasts pressing into his chest and his hands coming to her waist to support her, gently cradling her softness in his hands, tracing her curves with feather light fingers. Her hot breath was against his neck now as she kissed along his dead artery, nipping at his earlobe.

His head bent forward, resting in the crook of her neck and starting to press light kisses there, alternating between soft presses and gentle nips with his teeth. Her soft pants and gasps in his ear were more arousing than a moan from a porn star. He kissed and nipped his way to a spot just under and behind her ear, making her whimper and tangle her fingers into the golden hair at the nape of his neck.

His tongue flicked at it, feeling her hand clench into a fist. He kissed his way around and along her jaw, finally placing a small kiss at the corner of her parted lips. Tawny eyes dark with lust as he stared into hers, hooded brown eyes filled with heady desire and her scent not only arousing but addicting. He pressed his mouth to hers in a near-bruising kiss, their lips moving in tandem.

His fingers never strayed from their light caresses along the slender curves of her body, tracing the lines of her form all the way down to the neatly trimmed hair that covered her sex, his fingers stroking, probing and teasing. She whimpered breathily into his mouth, her nails scraping against his scalp, and he growled, causing her scent to thicken and for her to coat his fingers with her arousal.

He pulled away from her lips to lightly kiss down her chin and along her jaw, pressing his nose to her artery and taking a long inhale, his lips parting in a low groan as her scent made him that much harder. His fingers stroked and probed her entrance, never entering but teasing, sliding up to stimulate her clit, relishing her keening moan as she clutched at his shoulders, her nails breaking against his hard skin.

When his fingers were absolutely sticky with her, he slid two fingers into her and she released a gasp of delight. He swallowed her moans, keens and whimpers, kissing her thoroughly, never getting enough of the taste of her. Her muscles fluttered around his fingers, gripping them as she came and contracting as he slid his fingers free.

Her arm wrapped around his neck as they kissed, taking a breath in between open-mouthed caresses. Her leg hooked over his waist, pressing her heat into him, against his erection and he swore, his fingers nearly-bruising on her skin as they gripped her waist. Her other hand rested on his shoulder to give her more leverage as she hooked the other around his waist so they were pressed together from chin to pelvis.

His hands cupped her ass, releasing an almost desperate groan as he pressed her sex into his. Her forehead rested on his, her lips pulling away as she gasped for breath in between the onslaught of sensation. His cool fingers still sticky with her orgasm, tweaked and plucked at her nipples.

Her head tilted back, exposing the long column of her throat and he worshiped that bit of flesh as well. Her hands splayed against his back, feeling the roll and coil of his muscles underneath his thick flesh. He felt warm all over, the heat from her hands radiating along his spine and into his bones, his hands slid up from her bottom supporting the small of her back as he lowered her to the bed, locking his eyes with hers as he joined them.

She twitched a little at his entrance, her mouth parting in a soft gasp that was music to his ears. His rhythm was slow at first, picking up when she crossed her ankles behind his back, urging him further. Her moans grew in volume, her breasts heaving with each intake of breath.

His hands gripped the sheets next to her head, lest he grab her and seriously harm her while so overtaken. "More," she begged, "more." He licked and sucked on her nipples, his cool breath making her nipples tighten. "More," she repeated sounding a bit more desperate.

"Tell me what you want," he murmured against her neck, the tip of his tongue dragging along her throbbing artery before he sucked on her pulse point. She arched into him, baring her neck to give him more access.

"More...of you...Hard," she said breathlessly in between whimpers. He flipped her onto her stomach, not missing a beat as he gripped her hips, raising her backside into the air while her cheek remained pressed against the mattress. He used a bit of his strength and speed, making her jaw drop in a pretty little 'o' and her eyes roll back into her head.

"Oh fuck," she swore, her hands gripping and tugging on the mattress, scrabbling for something to grip on. He groaned as her warmth seized him, wrapping tightly around him as her orgasm neared.

"Shit," he panted, dragging his fingers down along her spine, barely registering the difference in texture, lost in the feel of her. Her moans grew louder in volume, her spine arching as her whole body seized with sensation, her lips parting in a silent scream, finally calling out a his name as she released all over him, he continued to thrust letting her ride it out and it didn't take him too long before he reached his end as well.

She sagged, boneless into the mattress but he had not yet finished with her, having yet to prove just how insatiable he could be. He flipped her onto her back, pulling her into his lap as he sat on the bed. And she shuddered against him, feeling his already hard shaft against her sensitive skin. "You really are insatiable," she panted, a light sheen of sweat decorating her forehead and neck.

"Told you so," he smirked, lifting his hips into hers, keeping his eyes on her face. She watched him slide into her, biting her lip to contain her moan and releasing a little whimper instead. Her eyes rose to meet his, no sign of gold in his desirous onyx eyes. The way he looked at her sent sparks of heat through her, his openly lewd stare making her internal muscles clench and he grunted, his hands flexing where they held her waist.

He gave a little thrust up into her, making her eyelids flutter, her hands come up to rest on his chest as they moved in tandem. Her lips parted, her breath hitching each time he slid home.

He kissed her, long, deep and tender before moving to the corner of her mouth so she could breath, kissing down her chin and along her neck, letting his forehead rest there, breathing in her scent.

He added a bit more lift and force to his thrusts, keeping his rhythm steady and her gasps grew into loud breathy sighs then into moans. Her nails dug into his shoulder, letting her head fall forward as their hips moved together as one.

She bit her lip, muffling her moan and Jasper gave a nip to the juncture between her neck and shoulder. She whimpered, tilting her head to encourage him further letting him lip, kiss and nip up and down the flawless column of her neck.

Letting out a whimper as his cool tongue traced her artery again, his hands cupped her bottom pulling him in to meet his thrusts and allowing him to hit deeper. She dug her nails into his shoulders, gasping for breath as her orgasm built, making her body tense with the intense wave. Again Jasper absorbed it and recycled it back to her, her release recurring until she felt boneless.

She collapsed against his chest, gasping for breath, her body damp with sweat and her heart racing. He leaned back against the headboard, content to let her sit in his arms. He closed his eyes and let his cheek rest on her head, glad to feel her warmth atop him. He gently lifted her off of him making her twitch and shiver slightly before she relaxed against him again, feeling like a life-sized rag doll.

A gentle rolling rumble started in his chest as he took in her scent. "You're purring," she said dreamily, spent and well on her way to falling asleep, "like a...giant kitty cat..." her breathing started to even out. "A giant...insatiable...cat..." his lip curled in a smirk, his purr getting louder when she fell asleep in his arms, skillfully rolling them both so that she remained curled against him. She sighed and nestled further into him, completely asleep now and he continued to purr.

* * *

**Nyx: So, there you have it. Nice and sexy and a little bit of fluff for you guys as well.**

**Puff: I'm so completely addicted to cheesecake. *shoves his face into his plate***

**Nyx: So, while Puff stuffs his face I encourage you guys to review. Even if you're mad at me for being a week late with this thing.**

**Puff: Om nom nom...**


	21. Amo

**Nyx: *yawn***

**Puff: *with his mouth full* I like biscuits!**

**Nyx: *sighs* You see what I have to live with? *gestures* Now, I don't own. But you steal my ideas and I'll come after you. *gives potential offenders the Glare of Destiny (copyrighted by Fang)* **

**Puff: Om nom nom!**

* * *

_Can't you feel I'm drawing near_  
_The place that broke your heart_  
_Cut up and scarred_  
_The dawn is breaking_  
_My body's shaking_  
_Oh, the secret memories you keep_  
_Ignoring so that you can sleep_  
_I'm facing what you won't tonight_  
_The dawn is breaking_  
_My body's shaking_

_-Great Love, Flyleaf_

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Chapter 21. Amo

When Bella woke the next morning she was deliciously sore, the vaguely familiar feeling very welcome and she stretched with a light sigh, relaxing and realizing that she was pressed against a solid, cold wall of muscle. She looked up, meeting Jasper's dark butterscotch colored eyes, golden hair falling across his forehead, feeling want stir in her abdomen again just by looking at him. "Good morning," he rumbled sounding a bit amused.

"Good morning," she said sounding a little raspy, not only from sleep but from her near-exhausted vocal chords. "Mmm, it is indeed," he said craning his neck to give her a light kiss but even that sparked heat, tingling from her mouth all the way down her neck to pool in her gut. She bit her lip to stop herself from panting like a bitch in heat, putting a few inches between them so she wouldn't mount him again.

"What time is it?" she asked, running a hand through her hair, her fingers catching in a few snarls before she tilted her head to crack her neck, letting out a satisfied sigh when she heard the other loud crack. "Six thirty," he said, continuing to watch her. She frowned slightly.

"Really?" she asked, "What time did I wake up this morning?" she asked.

"I woke you up around five," he smirked, "and kept you busy until eight..." She did the math in her head, her lips parting in surprise when she realized she'd gotten a full ten hours of sleep...and not had a single nightmare.

For the first time in years she felt well rested and full of energy, even though the slightest bit of fatigue lingered in her limbs, unused to such a large amount of sleep.

But her body had needed it and Jasper, apparently, was the key. Unsure how to feel she yawned and moved to get out of bed, stretching again once she got to her feet, feeling her joints pop and delighting in the stretch that came with her muscles.

"That certainly was the best sleep I've had in awhile," she admitted, laughing a little but Jasper didn't reply instead his eyes were on her back, seeing the faint pattern that slashed across her spine and down across her hip for the very first time, the light hitting her skin just so.

He wanted to berate himself for not noticing earlier, seeing as he'd seen her naked plenty of times before, but so wrapped up in the heat of the moment that he hadn't been very observant. He reached out to lightly touch the scars, and she twitched and tensed at his touch.

He wasn't sure what to say, or how she would react even to a simple apology instead pressing a kiss to where the scars began and leaving a trail along her spine before going back to her shoulder and pressing a kiss there, feeling her relax under his ministrations. He didn't have to say anything at all, his actions did it for him. And she closed her eyes fighting down the surge of emotion that threatened to swell and go straight to her tear ducts.

His cool arms wrapped around her waist and for a moment she let him hold her before she turned and said, "Come on, we need to shower so I can get back to Nim's place and see if my father and uncle have left the city yet," she told him. Jasper pouted, poking out his bottom lip and giving her puppy dog eyes and she blinked in surprise at him.

"But I like it when you smell like me," he said, emphasizing his point by burying his nose in the crook of her neck and inhaling deeply, his hands going to her waist as he began to purr. She inhaled a little through her nose, unconsciously tilting her head to give him a bit more access and feeling his lips press against the base of her throat. Scrambling for her scattered wits, she took a step back,

"Jasper," she told him and he huffed, pouting a little and it almost hurt to hold onto her composure, giving a little when he continued to pout. "Later," she promised and turned towards the bathroom, pausing at the door and seeing that he had made to follow her.

"Oh no," she told him, "You will wait until I get out," she told him, "you'll only make us even more late." he shrugged, shamelessly.

"What can I say? You're addictive," he said with a wink and she felt her abdomen tighten.

"Not so bad yourself, Major," she said returning his wink before stepping into the bathroom and shutting the door, getting a last glimpse at his damn near perfect form beforehand and biting her lip, shooting a glance at the ceiling. Her hand hovered over the doorknob, teetering on the idea of locking it but her fingers never touched it, instead climbing into the shower and Jasper took the absence of the low click as a sign that she had changed her mind.

He wasted no time in climbing into the shower behind her, lathering his hands with soap and beginning to wash her. The sexual part over, he just wanted to take care of her. He combed his fingers through her tresses after lathering her long hair with shampoo. She sighed, perfectly content, "That feels...so nice," she said dreamily, cooperating when he turned her around and gently tilted her head back to let her hair rinse, combing out the snarls and tangles with his fingers, still so gently.

All the while her hooded eyes watched him, her lips slightly parted then lifted her hands, lathered heavily with soap and washed him as well. He watched her face as she washed him, reluctantly turning to allow her access to his back, feeling her fingers trace the multitude of marks, maps upon maps of scars criss-crossing, decorating his back, each one of them with a story, a symbol of his strength. For her, it was a bit of a turn on, knowing how powerful he was.

He stayed perfectly still as she traced a particularly deep bite on his back just barely overlaying his shoulder. "I was...particularly moody that day," he said slowly, "the other officers that Maria put his place couldn't hope to control me at the moment, so she tackled me from behind and put me in a hold before giving me the bite. I got even angrier and the more I struggled, the deeper her teeth went."

"If she weren't already dead I'd kill her myself," Bella admitted. He turned to look at her, eyes on the brink of turning completely black, a curious look on his face. "So would I," he said, "over and over and over...I don't know how many times. A hundred, a thousand. I would never be satisfied, never feel repaid for all the years she took from me."

Bella was silent, feeling some genuine empathy for the first time in years. It was peculiar to her, how he could make her feel...and she wasn't quite sure whether she liked it or not. "I feel the same way," she murmured, "and...maybe someday when all of this is over and we have some quiet time...I'll tell you." he kissed her forehead and she couldn't help but close her eyes, absorbing the feel of his kiss.

He didn't have to say anything, for his silence said it all. He rinsed and lagged behind, watching her rub her wet hair with a towel and dry herself off with the utmost look of interest on his face, not in the least bit ashamed, trying not to pout like a child when she wrapped her towel about her torso and set about to drying himself off. Bella left the bathroom, spotting a neatly folded pile on the bed and she raised an eyebrow at the clothing. "What's this?" she asked.

"It looks like Charlotte decided to lend you some of her things," Jasper said. Bella held up the shirt.

"I think this was made for someone with larger breasts," she said.

"I think your breasts are fantastic," Jasper said.

"You're biased," she told him.

"Yes I am," he replied staring shamelessly and she rolled her eyes, her lips twitching as she held back a smile. He fetched a pair of jeans and a shirt for himself, turning back around to find Bella shimmying into the jeans Charlotte had lent her, the fabric skin-tight, molding to her curves and ultimately drawing his attention. "Holy fuck," he muttered, watching her pull on the rest of her clothing.

Now he wanted her naked again, but chances were she'd insist on going back to Nimueh's. She ran her fingers through her damp hair and caught him standing there, stiff as a board and staring at her like he was a starving man. "I don't know if I want to strangle Charlotte or thank her," he said, voice rough with want.

"Easy, Major," she said, "you'll have me all to yourself later. Right now, we have a previous engagement." he pouted but led the way out of the bedroom, finding Peter and Charlotte waiting for them. "Well would ya look at that Char," Peter said, laying his drawl on thick, "that there should be in the dictionary under post-coitus." Charlotte rolled her eyes at her husband's antics, but Bella just blinked, looking completely unfazed.

"You must be Peter," she said, "Jasper's told me next to nothing about you."

"Funny thing, he's talked an awful lot about you," Peter said and stepped forward to extend his hand, "Bella, right?"

"Yes," she said, before looking at Charlotte, "and this must be your mate. Charlotte, yes?" Charlotte raised an eyebrow at Bella giving her a once over.

"I see that the clothes fit," she said.

"Yes, they do. I'll be sure to return them to you," Bella said cordially.

"I much appreciate that," Charlotte said.

"You're awful polite, sugar," Peter commented, still laying on the drawl, "Jasper, where'd you dig this one up?" Charlotte elbowed him, giving him a look of disapproval while Bella raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?"

"I didn't 'dig her up' you jackass," Jasper told him, "more like she pulled my ass out of the gutter." Peter just looked bemused.

"If you and I are going to have a problem Peter, I don't have an issue with mounting your head in the driveway of Swan Manor," Bella said eyes flashing red. Peter and Charlotte just stared at her, the female with her eyes slightly narrowed at the threat to her mate.

"I like you," Peter said.

* * *

**Nyx: I'm a bit iffy on how this chapter turned out. But I shall let you all judge. **

**Puff: I must have more biscuits!**

**Nyx: So, review good people-!**

**Puff: And bring me biscuits! **

**Nyx: No! No more biscuits!**


	22. Invulgo

**Nyx: Gahh! Finally it is done! Two days later than it was supposed to be finished.**

**Puff: *doing a jig in the corner* Stronger than a hurricane, and softer than the summer rain!**

**Nyx: Puff's been really into reggae music recently...honestly I'm going out of my mind. But in the meantime, I don't own Twilight, my OCs are mine unless I state otherwise, you steal my universe I keel you. Enjoy all!**

* * *

_Tell me what you want to hear_  
_Something that will light those ears_  
_Sick of all the insincere_  
_So I'm gonna give all my secrets away_

_-Secrets, OneRepublic_

* * *

Chapter 22. Invulgo

The car ride back to Nimueh's was more than a little tense. Charlotte refused to speak or acknowledge Bella's presence, torn between wanting to rip the girl's throat out and commending her on the balls of steel she possessed.

Peter had tried to lighten the mood more than once and failed each time, finally falling into an awkward silence and Jasper held it together as best he could. When the bluestone came in sight, it was a relief to step away from the tense atmosphere and up the steps, Bella leading the way. Jasper could hear commotion on the inside, muffled though as if the building were soundproofed...which he had a feeling was.

Bella opened the door to reveal a few of the Reapers he'd had the pleasure of meeting last week, one of which was a very upset Max. Leaning up against the banister was a man he'd never seen before, though his scent was offputting, vaguely reminding him of the smell that had covered Bella the night he'd found her outside of his apartment door with blood staining her torso.

"What the fuck is going on?" Bella asked, clearly unamused by the scene playing out in front of her and the room went silent, the very house itself seemed to hold its breath, unwilling to relinquish the news. Finally Azazel was the one who spoke, "Cato seems to believe that Max is his mate," he deadpanned. Bella was staggered and shot a look at the Lycan who looked bored to tears, and met her eyes with a slight nod. "No shit?" Bella asked.

"None," Cato replied, also in a deadpan.

"I still call bullshit!" Max announced, "There is no way in hell I'm going to be stuck with him for the rest of my days."

"The feeling is mutual, girl," the Lycan drawled, "now please stop screeching, it only adds to the unpleasantness of the situation."

"Go fuck yourself you insensitive son of a-," Max started in, but was cut off by Nimueh reentering the room holding a heavy tome, the writing on the cover like a tangle of Sumerian spaghetti that would make even a genius's head hurt. "The demon dog says you're his mate, chances are he's telling the truth," she said, all monotonous and no nonsense as usual. Max spluttered so incensed she struggled for words, but Nimueh fixed her with her penetrating pale eyes, "I suggest you do more research before you go about this with the same irrationality you have right now." at that, the girl shut her mouth and left the house, shoving past the vampires on her way out. "Well...she seems nice," Peter drawled.

"I best be leaving as well," Cato stood, stretching out his legs and straightening to his full height which was a good few inches taller than the demon hybrid in the corner. He stopped in front of Jasper, his nose twitching, "Consorting with daywalkers, are we, Bella?" Cato asked, shooting the mentioned Reaper a look.

"None of your tomfoolery Cato, move it along," Nimueh retorted, her eyes narrowing at the back of the Lycan who only gave them the lightest of smirks before he breezed out of the door on long leonine legs. "What the fuck was that?" Peter muttered.

"Cato's a Lycan," Bella informed him, "his is a rare species. You'd do well not to challenge him to a fight." Peter caught the absolutely solemn look on Bella's face and for once decided to listen, but he still had no idea what a Lycan was.

"He called us 'daywalkers'," Charlotte frowned, "what the fuck's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you can walk in the daylight," Azazel drawled. "I thought vampires were supposed to be intelligent." Nimueh and Bella both gasped dramatically and exchanged a look.

"Was that...?" Bella asked, hamming it up.

"I believe so," Nimueh said, with a nod before placing the back of her hand on her forehead, tilting her head like the old actresses would have done. "Azazel has a sense of humor, what is the world coming to?" she said.

"What's this I hear about Azazel and a sense of humor?" Liam emerged from the bathroom, zipping up his jeans, "'Cause that can't be true." Azazel rolled his eyes looking entirely unamused.

"Hilarious," he murmured, before he gave a nod of acknowledgement to Jasper who returned the nod making Bella and Nimueh both raise their eyebrows and exchange a look. Liam just plopped onto the couch and turned on the television, flipping through channels. "Why is it nothing is ever on?" he complained.

"It depends on your definition of 'nothing', Liam," Nimueh said neutrally, keeping her eyes on Peter and Charlotte still awkwardly standing next to the door exchanging yet another look with Bella, this time, punctuating her silent sentence with a nod. With a flick of her fingers, Bella turned the television off, startling the two daywalkers. "Oh goody, briefing the newcomers," Azazel deadpanned.

"As you may or may not have noticed Mr. and Mrs. Whitlock, we're not an ordinary group of people," Nimueh said, "and something tells me you're gonna be hanging around with this guy a lot." she pointed at Jasper who just shrugged.

"'Cause you just know shit," Peter quipped, with an eyebrow raised, "right?"

"Azazel's right, I thought you vampires were supposed to be intelligent," Nimueh said, "I'm a Seer."

"So you're psychic?" Charlotte asked with an eyebrow raised, a bit of distaste rising in her mouth. The only Seer she'd ever met was Alice, and Alice abused her power...a lot.

Nimueh's mouth screwed up at the word, "I don't really like that term, but yes. I am psychic. Unfortunately," she sounded a bit bitter that she was gifted with such a thing.

"Well that makes sense," Charlotte muttered, curious despite herself, "do you get visions often?"

"Not really," Nimueh said, "every few weeks or so. I don't control my gift, it controls me. And whatever it decides to show me I don't interfere with it. Unless it's dire, like end of the world dire." Charlotte blinked at her, and even Peter was a bit flabbergasted. A psychic without a God complex? Certainly a first.

"Our Nimmy is special," Liam cooed, tugging on a lock of Nimueh's pale hair. The psychic rolled her eyes and swatted at his hand, making the him emit a delighted cackle.

"If anyone here should be riding the short bus, it's you," Nimueh quipped.

Azazel rolled his eyes and glanced at the vampires still standing awkwardly near the doorway, "Neither of you have asked if the daywalkers have questions," Azazel said flatly.

"Do you?" Nimueh asked and Charlotte promptly fixed her eyes on Bella.

"What are you?" she asked bluntly and Bella raised an eyebrow.

"I'm a Reaper," Bella said and gestured to Azazel and Liam, "and so are they." Charlotte blinked, unsure whether or not if the girl was pulling her leg or not, though she was wavering on the not.

"So you're like the ferryman's lackeys?" Peter asked.

"Not really," she said shrugging, "we'll pick up the occasional poltergeist or spirit floating around-"

"but we mostly kill monsters," Liam said, "kickin' butt and takin' names!"

"Like a supernatural police force?" Peter asked and then started to chortle, "You guys have a badge?" but all three pulled aside the collar of their shirts, revealing the blocked letter 'R' just under their collarbone. "Oh and it's also inscribed into our palms," Bella held up her hand for demonstration. Upon closer look, one could see the 'R' woven into the lines of her hand. Peter stopped laughing and muttered, "Well I'll be damned."

"Do you kill vampires too?" Charlotte asked.

"Yes," Azazel said, "only the troublemakers though. We follow a strict Code."

"Just like a police force," Peter muttered and Charlotte elbowed him in the ribs, hard enough to leave a hairline fissure in his skin and he hissed under his breath. Azazel rolled his eyes.

"Yes, just like a police force," the half-demon deadpanned.

"You say daywalkers like there's more than one type of vampire," Charlotte deduced, her intuition giving her that much at least.

"There is," Bella said, "chances are, you'll get to meet Daniil soon."

"If he's anything like Frown then this should be interesting," Jasper muttered, and Bella only smirked.

"Lets take them to the briefing," Liam suggested, "I don't see anything wrong with that."

"I concur," Bella said and shot a look at Azazel who released a sigh.

"I suppose the cold ones can tag along," he said and gave Jasper's protégées a hard look, "if we're sure we can trust them."

"I trust them," Jasper said, "with my life."

"You're not a Reaper," Azazel said bluntly.

"Neither is Nimueh," Liam replied, "but we still invite her along." the psychic was already immersed in the odd text she'd brought from her study, and made an absentminded noise of assent.

"That settles it then," Bella said, "the Whitlocks are coming."

"Alright! Field trip!" Liam fist pumped.

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**Nyx: Two days late, I know. The chapter wasn't entirely useless, Peter and Charlotte are finally in the know regarding the Reaper world. **

**Puff: Love power!**

**Nyx: I'll be trying my best to update on time from now on I swear. RL is putting up a fight, y'all, and I'd really appreciate it if you reviewed.**

**Puff: A little love power!**

**Nyx: That's the spirit, Puff! **


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